Hunting Two
by Kesy
Summary: Vash was so close to Rem’s Eden. Now it was gone again, snatched away just like she was. VashxMeryl Knivesx? Millyx? R&R Please!
1. Wake

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Disclaimer: Owning Trigun would be better than finding Paradise! But unfortunately it isn't happening. So in other words I don't own Trigun or it's caracters.

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Hi, readers! This is my very first fan fiction and I'm a little nervous. I've been dying to submit a story for quite a long time and I finally got the courage to do so. Anyway, please review and please be nice, again this is my first time. Any help or advice you can offer me is greatly appreciated and I hope you enjoy it!

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Wake 

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Meryl Stryfe sighed for what seemed like the hundredth time that day. She stood over a cutting board next to a hot pot of soup. Slowly slicing the fresh thomas meat, she prepared the meal for the day, however only half of her attention was on the task at hand. It had been almost a week since the return of Vash the Stampede. Meryl, of course was happy to see the outlaw, but she was less than thrilled about the surprise he had brought along with him. Knives. The same Knives that had tried to wipe out all humanity on the miserable little planet, the same Knives that caused Vash so much pain, the same Knives that had put her life in danger. The same Knives that was Vash's brother. Vash told her that he wanted to change Knives, to save him. He wanted him to realize that there was much more to humans, and that they deserved a chance. He wanted Knives to see humans the as people. Meryl snorted at the idea. It seemed very unlikely that a cold hearted maniac could ever change. Yet, she kept her opinion to herself.

A sharp sting brought the insurance agent out of her thoughts. A small drop of blood trickled down her index finger. Cursing sharply under her breath, she quickly sucked on the wound. Abandoning the finely chopped meat, she turned on the faucet, letting the cool water wash away the blood. She hissed as a sliver of pain shot up her arm. The cut was small, but deep. Shaking her hand of the excess water, Meryl went to the small cabinet that housed the small first-aid kid. Bringing out the white box, she opened it, looking fiercely for a band-aid.

"Sempai! I'm home!" a high honey coated voice rang out through the house.

"I'm in the kitchen, Milly!" Meryl yelled back, not looking up from her mission.

Milly Thompson walked into the small kitchen with a rather large smile. She could almost taste supper through the delicious aroma that drifted around the house. It had been quite a hard day at work, but hitting another much needed water source was well worth it.

"You won't believe the da…" she stopped noticing small droplets of red on the counter "Sempai! What happened?"

"Nothing, Milly, I just cut myself." The petite woman replied wrapping a band-aid around her finger.

Meryl smiled up at her friend, assuring her as she fetched a towel.

"No, Sempai let me take care of that." Milly said sweetly taking the cloth form Meryl's hands.

"Milly, it's okay, I'll…"

Meryl was cut short as the tall girl wet the cloth and began wiping the flat surface.

Smiling at the bright faced brunette she walked back to the stove. Slowly she lifted the cutting board and emptied the meat into the pot. Gently stirring the simmering contents, she let her mind wander back to her friend. Milly never ceased to amaze Meryl. She was innocent yet she had seen so much horror. She was clumsy yet perceptive. She was emotional yet stronger than Meryl could ever be.

Traveling with Vash the Stampede had been hard on both of the insurance agents, more so on Milly than Meryl. The sweet natured girl was torn apart when the priest, Nicolas D. Wolfwood, had died. Meryl could still hear her heart breaking cries. She felt so helpless not being able to do anything to ease her pain. However, Milly soon buried herself in work at the water site, an escape from her problems. Milly never told her what exactly had happened between her and the strange priest, but Meryl could a make safe enough guess. And now the cause of Milly's heart break was sleeping soundly upstairs. Just the thought of him burned Meryl inside.

Unlike Meryl, Milly didn't seem to hate or even dislike Knives. If she did hate Knives she was very good at hiding it. Although it was hard to believe Milly could feel anything fowl toward anyone, even such a man as Knives. It had been her that took care of Knives when Vash first came back. The spikey haired blonde had passed out for the first two days, and she had taken it upon herself to see after Knives' wounds. Even though Meryl insisted she be the one, the big girl simply smiled brightly making the decision final. Meryl sighed again; Knives didn't deserve such kindness, especially from Milly.

"Sempai?" Milly said walking up next to Meryl.

"Hmm."

"Where's Mr. Vash?"

Meryl thought for a moment, she had seen the goof only twice the entire day. He seemed a bit different today, though. The high spirited outlaw seemed to have dimmed quite a lot since yesterday. He had been in his and Knives' room only coming out for breakfast and lunch. He barely said anything to her at all and it occurred to Meryl that the true smiles that she was getting from Vash lately were again being tainted with sorrow and worry.

"He's in his room Milly." Meryl said finally.

"Afually," a muffled voice said behind them "fe's fin he kickhen."

Both the women turned around to find Vash the Stampede, The Humanoid Typhoon, The Sixty Billion Double Dollar Man, the most feared outlaw, stuffing his face viciously with pink and white sprinkled donuts. _How the hell…?_

"Vash!" Meryl scolded "You're going to ruin you're appetite!"

"Ohh, Mr. Vash, those look good! May I have one?"

"Milly!"

Meryl's bewilderment went to deaf ears as Milly walked up to Vash and graciously accepted the sweet pastry. The petite growled in frustration and turned back to the pot of soup muttering angrily only to miss the beaming smiles exchanged between the Vash the Stampede and Stun Gun Milly.

---

The three temporary residents of the small house sat at the round table diminishing the meal in front of them. Meryl, however, was having a hard time enjoying her own creation. She stole glances at Vash constantly; she definitely knew something was wrong. He was acting like his old self, when he was hiding something. He was putting up his mask again; he was trying to protect them. _Does it have to do with Knives?_ Meryl thought panicking slightly. The thought of him waking up truly frightened her. There was no grantee what he would do. He was injured yes, but would that actually stop him from his life long mission? What about when he's cured? Will he really listen to Vash just after one battle? Won't he just be angrier and crueler than he had been? And what would happen if he found out that humans have been taking care of him? Meryl winced at the thought, that would surely drive him over the edge.

"Meryl?"

Meryl snapped out her daze at the sound of her name. It seemed foreign coming from the owner, she was surprised he even remembered her name. Smiling she looked at the him,

"Yes?"

"Are you okay?" he asked.

Meryl blushed at his concern. Hating herself for it, she glared at Vash,

"Of course I am, why wouldn't I be broomhead?"

Vash flinched and sunk into his chair at the tone of her voice, leaving only his spiked hair and two large pleading aqua orbs visible above the table.

"Sorry."

Meryl rolled her eyes.

"Finish your soup, Vash."

The Typhoon immediately shot back up and with a salute and a 'Yes Ma'am!' he attacked his bowl.

After dinner, Vash disappeared into the living room. Milly had volunteered to do the dishes. Meryl pressed that it was her turn, but Milly wouldn't allow it.

"Besides," Milly said clearing the table "you still have to tell Mr. Vash that _thing_, remember?"

Meryl's stomach fell to the floor, of course, how could she forget? Every time she looks at him that's all she can think about. She was in love with the infamous outlaw, she could deny that no more, but how could she tell that to someone like Vash?

Since the time Vash had left for his fight with Knives, Meryl had thought about how to approach him. She had thought of many outcomes which involved Vash's lips on top of hers and many more outcomes of heartbreak. And there were too many risks as well. Someone could use her to get to him, hell, it had already been done. But would she really be able to live with herself if she never told him? Could she really throw away a chance to be with the one man she loved for the rest of her life?

"I…I don't know about that anymore, Milly," Meryl said softly.

The brunette placed her hands firmly on her hips and looked down at the raven haired woman. She could not believe she was hearing this from Meryl 'Derringer' Stryfe. She just couldn't understand what was so hard about telling Mr. Vash that she loved him. It was so simple and once she did tell him she could be happy. And if Mr. Vash didn't feel that same way at least she would know instead of wondering about it forever. Why do people complicate such easy situations?

"If you don't tell him Sempai," she huffed "I will."

Meryl stared at her, knowing full well that she would follow through with her sweet-hearted threat. Breathing heavily she agreed and made her way to the living room.

Vash was lying on the worn sofa with an elbow across his forehead and a hand on his chest. He looked up at the ceiling, trying to look through the eroded slad of stone to see his brother above. Knives was definitely gaining consciousness, fast. It was only a matter of days before he woke. He had spent the whole day trying to reach his brother's mind but Knives had blocked him out and his barriers were almost unbreakable. Still he kept his connection open. He had only left the room twice. Meryl noticed something was troubling him, he knew that, but she hadn't said anything. Vash was beginning to wonder if it had been a good idea bringing Knives to the girls. But he had nowhere else to go, and he needed his and his brother's wounds treated.

Milly greeted them both with open arms, and had even taken care of Knives for a few days. Vash smiled at the bone crushing hug he received upon his arrival. The girl in fact had a big heart. Vash had been a little hesitant about coming back, especially because of Milly. He wondered if she could cope with the man who had killed the man she cared about the most. Of course being who she was she had no objection with Knives retuning to health.

Meryl however hadn't been so welcoming. Vash could still remember her brightly lit eyes turn to stone at the first glance of Knives. The ember of hope flickered out in his chest. He feared deeply that she would ask him to leave. Surprisingly, she had yelled at him for making her worry for so long, and clonked him despite his injuries. He snickered at the memory, he should've expected that. She relentlessly scolded him as she helped him back to the house. Her voice had been the last thing he heard before he passed out. And when he woke, again his ears were filled with her high but concerned tone.

She was no different than Vash himself. The Typhoon knew the uptight, no nonsense, my-work-is-my-life act, was just a cover for a gentle hearted girl. They both disguised themselves from the people around them.

Nevertheless, there had only been one occasion were she had come out of her shell, only to save his life, when Vash himself cared not about it. Meryl had pleaded with the pained man who revenged on taking the legendary gunman's life. No one has the right of take the life of another, she said. Those words brought the outlaw out of his lost trance. He looked up at her, hearing the exact words of the woman who shaped the person he was today. Rem, he saw Rem Saverem in Meryl Stryfe, and he saw the answer he was searching for. She saved his life that day giving him a chance to save his brother.

His feelings toward the petite woman changed since then. He already saw her as a friend but now things were different, things he couldn't understand. Every time she smiled, his heart fluttered ever so lightly. Every time she was angry or frustrated or irritated with him, she would glare at him or hit him on the head and, strange as it may be, the Typhoon found it very endearing. Vash repeatedly caught himself smiling at her when ever she was concentrating on something. The frown that tugged her lips was so… so…cute. Vash shook his head. No, no, he couldn't be in… but was it really such a far fetched idea? Hadn't he been searching for the elusive mayfly known as love? And they knew each other for quite some time already. Still, he wasn't sure if he could afford to fall in love. Until he was positive that Knives was saved and no longer dangerous, his feelings would have to wait.

Sighing, gunman brought his thoughts back to his brother again. _Will you finally listen to me Knives?_ he thought _Will you do as I ask?_ Vash closed his eyes, breathing deeply when he felt someone's presence enter the room.

Meryl entered the ill furnished room, her thoughts racing frantically. Vash opened his just closed eyes and looked at her. He was spread out on the leafy green sofa, which Meryl found very fascinating at the moment. Who matched a green sofa with grey carpet anyway? _No Meryl, focus_, she told herself firmly.

"Hey, Short girl." Vash said sitting up.

She smiled inwardly at the nickname, her heart beat viciously in her throat. She walked up to the arm chair placed next to the sofa and sat down; it proved to be a very hard task to accomplish, when her mind disagreed with her heart. She took a deep breath and forced herself to look at the man before her.

"Vash, I have something to tell you." she said shakily.

The gunman looked at the for a second before saying,

"Ironic, because I have something to tell you."

Meryl looked at him quizzically; he had something to tell her?

"Oh, what is it?"

"No, you go first." Vash said.

"Really, Vash, tell me wha…"

"No, Meryl, I insist."

_This is getting us nowhere._

"Just go you spiky haired idiot!" she snapped.

With amazing speed Vash sat up straight and pointed his chin firmly to the ceiling.

"Yes Ma'am!"

Meryl rolled her eyes and muttered 'broomhead' under her breath.

Vash relaxed hearing the soft murmur and smiled. A pale blush graced Meryl's cheeks, but it disappeared as soon as it appeared. He wondered if he imagined it.

"Meryl," he began looking directly into her eyes. Meryl's heart beat sped up, threatening to explode. "I wanted to tell you that I…" Vash froze.

There was a small tug in the back of his mind, almost like something was opening. Slowly he traced the pull behind him, dreading the thought of where it was going, up the stairs, across the hall and into his room…

A dark shadow crossed the Stampede's eyes, enveloping his features. Meryl knew that look all too well.

"What is it Vash?" she asked, afraid of the answer.

"Knives".

The insurance agent's lodged heart turned cold.

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Next Chapter: Spider Games

Hope it's a good beginning! Please review and let me know what you think! Should I keep going?

--Pheonix--


	2. Spider Games

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Here is the next chapter. I'm very happy with the reviews that I got. My first two reviews! I was jumping up and down. Anyway, on with the story. BTW sorry about any spelling or grammar mistakes that I might've made!

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Disclaimer: Phoenix: I won't say it and you can't make me!

Vash: Come on, you can do it.

Phoenix: No (zips lips and throws away the key)

Vash: (tries to catch the 'key') Aww, I missed it!

Meryl: (sweat drop) Just say the damn words and get it over with!

Phoenix: Okay! Damn woman you've got serious anger management issues! (Meryl glares violently, Vash laughs agreeing) I don't own Trigun! (THUNK! (Turns to see Vash twitching on the floor with Meryl towering over with a balled fist)) Case in point. (shouts) I NEED A FIRST AID KIT... AND AN EXORCIST!

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Spider Games

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Clinging dishes filled the kitchen as Milly gently scrubbed each one to its most brilliant shine. She hummed quietly trying to distract herself from the living room. Her middle-big brother had told her that it was bad to eavesdrop, but every bone in her was itching to know what was going on. Sempai had left only a few moments ago and Milly was growing steadily eager. She hoped everything would work out with her and Mr. Vash. They both deserved happiness and Milly had a strong feeling that they would find it with each other. Of course, if Mr. Vash ever broke Meryl's heart after they were together, he'd have something worse than bounty hunters after him. But she knew Mr. Vash would never hurt Meryl on purpose or for his own selfish reasons, his heart was too big for that. He wouldn't even hurt a fly, in fact, Milly was sure he would gladly share his donut with it.

Still, she had a tough time understanding why so many people wanted to hurt him. Sure he's an outlaw, but that wasn't his fault. He was only trying to protect everyone and in return they feared him and scarred his body. Even Mr. Vash's brother, Mr. Knives wanted to hurt him. Milly frowned at that. Sibling rivalry was just silly! She had never fought with her siblings nor had she ever seen any of her family members fight. Even the thought seemed wrong. Brothers should never fight. They were family they should be able to work it out. Milly found it was always best to work out problems out over a big bowl of her mother's banana-chocolate pudding. Speaking of which…

Milly walked over to the miniature refrigerator swung open the door brightly. No matter how big her dinner may have been, she always had room for banana-chocolate pudding. She shivered slightly as a drift of chilly air brushed past her. Hardly caring for the other neatly stacked leftovers, Milly pushed and shoved until she had the familiar yellow and brown cup in her hand. It wasn't exactly mother's but it will have to do. Grabbing a newly rinsed spoon she sat down at the battered table. Beaming she dug a small mountain of sweet heaven. Yes, pudding definitely solved all problems… Milly's face softened. Then… then why were her eyes stinging? Why were tears flowing down her face? Why did her heart ache so much? If her pudding could solve her problems why… why was Mr. Wolfwood gone?

A repressed sob shook the naive girl. Silent tears from tightly closed eyes dripped steadily into the trembling cup. Suddenly the velvety jelly lost all its sweet taste. It was bitter now, unbearably bitter. The pudding was loosing its comforting taste to Milly a great deal lately. She was beginning to believe that the saccharine dessert would offer her no solution.

Everyone in the house reminded her of the Priest. The thought of what her Sempai and Mr. Vash might have reminded of what she lost. The thought of Mr. Knives brought back the truth he told her about himself, about his purpose. Milly chocked another sob. No. She couldn't do this, not now. Not when Meryl could walk in anytime with good news. She let out a dry laugh, doubting if Mr. Vash would let Meryl go so soon. Wiping her stained face quickly and began to wash the spoon fiercely before any more memories could torture her.

-

Vash the Stampede stood in at the threshold of the light starved room staring at his brother. The glare of Millions Knives pierced all the emotions pooling in his icy eyes. Too many flashed by too quickly, Vash almost grew dizzy. He stepped inside, closing the door behind him. Knives' eyes narrowed, menacingly. Vash stopped, he wasn't ready for this. He thought he was, but… Knives wasn't supposed to gain consciousness so soon. He knew Knives wouldn't heal like humans, but it was still too soon even for what he was. Vash sighed mentally, now was not the time. Knives was awake now, he had to go from there. He rehearsed what he would say to his brother many times before, but now his memory betrayed him. His brother's glare broke bringing Vash out of his thoughts. The bed protested loudly as Knives turned to face the wall. An involuntary wince of pain escaped him, Vash reached out a hand.

"Knives…"

"Don't." Knives hissed.

The hatred in his voice polluted every corner of the room. But thrown in it was a shot of pain and betrayal. Vash winced inwardly, but he kept his face blank in the dimness. Slowly he walked to head of the bed, pulled a chair to him and sat down.

"Knives, ple…"

"I said DON'T!" bellowed Knives.

He turned with the blink of an eye. He supported himself with one arm, while the other held a fist full of Vash's shirt. The outlaw didn't flinch, just looked on at his wounded brother. They stayed as such for a while, Knives slicing into aqua eyes and Vash staring impassively. Knives' supporting hand trembled in agony and with a small cry of pain he fell back down, releasing the Typhoon. Neither sibling spoke as Knives tried to regain control over his breathing.

"You shot me again, Vash." Knives said, now facing the wall above him.

"Yes, I did." Vash replied, all emotion drained of his voice.

Silence hung heavily between half plants. It dragged out for what seemed like ages before Knives spoke again.

"Why?" he asked his voice matching his brother's "To save _them_?"

The last word leaked with such malice, it made Vash sick. Taking a deep breath he answered,

"No Knives, to save you."

Knives faced Vash at his words with an emotion he himself couldn't recognize.

"Save me?"

"Rem asked me to."

The injured genocide stared at him. Suddenly a hint of amusement played in his eyes.Slowly he grinned, then she snickered and beforelong he was laughing. It wasn't a dry laugh or a lifeless chuckle. It was a loud, full hearted laugh. It was a laugh cold enough to freeze over the fires of Hell.

"The final wish of a dying woman," Knives said, chuckling through the bitter air "you're a classic, Vash."

Vash said nothing. He only allowed a shadow to cross over his eyes, before he spoke again.

"I want you to make me a promise, Knives." he said.

Knives stopped laughing, catching the steady yet serious tone in Vash's voice.

"What?"

"I want you to promise me you won't kill anyone, anymore."

Millions Knives stared blankly at his brother, unable to register what he had just said. How could he ask him to promise that? How did was expect him to change his dream to create their Eden? He was doing it for the both of them. He was creating a Paradise for themselves and their Plant siblings. He trying to rid the planet of the vermin called humans. They were nothing but parasites, leeching off of the enslaved angels. Why the hell couldn't Vash see that?

Anger fused itself with Knives' stomach. He opened his mouth to lash out but restrained at the feathery knock on the door.

"Va…Vash?"

The voice was soft and hesitant, it only made Knives angrier. With a twist of pure disgust, he glared at Vash, who simply got up and opened to the door.

A blanket of light pored into the room. Meryl stood with a pathetic disguise of bravery over her face. Vash looked down at her and smiled weakly. Meryl's face fell. She had come up here to be reassured, not have her fears confirmed.

"Vash, is… is he really…?"

"Yeah."

He could feel Knives' ferocity reeking in his mind. It wasn't safe here for her, at least not until he was Knives would hurt anyone. It wasn't safe for here Milly either. They had to leave before they got hurt.

"Meryl," he said looking square in her stormy eyes "you need to leave."

"What? No! I'm not leaving you here…"

"Meryl, please." he begged. Immediately the mask dropped, replaced by the fear and worry that were hidden underneath. Vash took a soft breath; it was strange to her like this.

"You need to leave as soon as you can. Just for a few days…maybe, but you need to go. Take Milly with…" he stopped. His face went blank. He just stared at her, eyes unfocused.

"Vash?"

Vash didn't say anything at first but then, a shade of a smile graced his face,

"Milly."

"Wha…?"

"Milly," he whispered quickly "I need you to get Milly."

Meryl opened her mouth to protest but he cut her off and shut the door. Vash took another breath a let it out, he hoped to God that his plan would work.

"So, what did your _pet_ want?" asked Knives distastefully.

Vash ignored the question; instead he turned around with a question of his own,

"How about we play a game, Knives?"

Knives looked at Vash quizzically, unsure if he'd heard right.

"A game?"

"Yes, a game. And if you loose, you make the promise."

The wounded brother thought for a second. The request was strange, other than the fact that it was made so abruptly. Vash had never won a game he played against Knives, and Vash knew that too. So why was he asking? There was something definitely behind the challenge, but Knives wasn't planning on passing up such a good opportunity.

"Fine Vash, I'll play, but what happens if I win?"

"We'll see _when_ you win."

Knives smirked, "You seem very confident about yourself brother. What game are we playing?"

"Chess."

Knives grinned. Vash was sure to loose, it was his worst game. So why play that game? Had he gotten better? _No matter_, he thought, _I'll still beat him. _

The sides of Vash's lips curved into a mischievous grin,_ Who said _I_ was playing against you, Knives?_

_-_

Meryl stared at the closed door with her mouth agape. How dare he? Here she was worried about him and he has the nerve to shut the door in her face! She shot a death glare towards the door. The urge to walk in and beat the needle brained idiot to a pulp was tempting. The only thing stopping her from doing so was his odd request. It was how bizarre how quickly his mood, features and posture changed. Meryl growled in frustration, no matter how many times she witnessed these changes, she never could understand how he did that. Even still, she couldn't understand why he wanted her to get Milly. It was literally out of the blue. One minute he was telling her to leave the next he wanted Milly. Meryl fumed, she was never going to understand.

Meryl made her way quickly to the living room where she found Milly taking up the whole couch. Her back was turned, but Meryl could still make out the small black ball of purring fur she was stroking. Her posture was… different, almost sad. She had her head leaning on the wall of the sofa and she was hunched over. Meryl took a worried step toward her friend,

"Milly?"

The tall girl turned around at the sound of her voice.

"Oh, hello Sempai!"she chirped. "How'd it go with Mr. Vash?"

Meryl looked at her for a moment before answering.

"I couldn't tell him Milly…"

Milly shot up from the hideous green sofa. The yellow eyed feline in her lap jumped and fell perfectly on its feet and scurried away. The brunette gave the petite woman a sugary stern look.

"Sempai, I'm really disappointed in you! You told me…"

"Yes, I remember Milly," Meryl said quickly "but it just so happens that Knives picked the same day to regain consciousness."

Milly stared at Meryl, trying to put two and two together. Suddenly her face lit up as her clapped her hands merrily.

"Oh Sempai, that's wonderful news! Does Mr. Vash know?"

Meryl gaped at her, wonderful news? Does she know who she was talking about? She sighed to herself at the question, of course she knew, and of course she was happy, that was just Milly. But she still couldn't help worry about Milly's possible feelings towards Knives. The deceased Priest was bound to come up sooner or later, _if_ they weren't all dead by then. Meryl shook her head, she couldn't concern herself with such thoughts now.

"Ma'am?"

"Milly, Vash wants to see you."

"Oh? Why Sempai?"

Meryl folded her arms with a cross look, "How should I know? All he told me was, no, _ordered_ me to get you and then shut the…"

She was cut short by the strong pull of the arm.

"Well c'mon Sempai! Let's go find out what he wants!" Milly said with a bit more cheer that Meryl wanted to hear.

-

The two Bernadelli agents stopped abruptly in front the twins' room. Milly tapped lightly on the door eager to know why Mr. Vash had called her. Countless number of questions were running through her mind, the good and the bad. Despite the chaos, she paid no attention, simply held a strawberry covered smile on her lips. A few moments later the door opened revealing Vash the Stampede.

"Milly, good you're here."

"You wanted to see me Mr. Vash?" asked Milly sweetly.

Vash nodded, "Yes, Milly, do you still have the chess board that you bought?"

Meryl shot him a questioning look, but decided to keep her mouth shut.

"Chess board?"

"Yes."

Milly thought for a second then nodded.

"Good," Vash said, almost reveled, "can you get it?"

With a quick nod and a warming smile Milly dashed off to the room her and Meryl's room. She didn't bother analyzing why Vash wanted her chess board. She guessed he wanted to play with his brother and simply passed it of their way of solving problems. It was their banana-chocolate pudding. Milly swiftly rummaged through the cramped closet. There! It was right where she had left it, next to the giant, well strapped, cross. Milly grabbed the board and hurried back. She found Meryl glaring coldly at the infamous blonde.

"Here you go, Mr. Vash!" she cheeped, handing him the board.

"Thanks, Mil…" Vash stopped looking at the object in his hands "Milly, where are the chess pieces?"

"Oh, you needed them too?" said Milly confused. A brief pause settled between the three of them as the raven haired agent and the outlaw gaped at her in disbelief.

"Yes, Milly" replied a patience-worn Meryl "when someone asks for a chess board they usually want the playing pieces too."

"Well, I'm sorry Sempai. I just thou…"

"Just get the pieces, Milly"

"Yes ma'am, right away!" said Milly and darted off.

With in moments the tall brunette returned with a rectangular box. Handing it to Vash she wished him the best of luck with the game.

"Actually Milly, you're the one playing."

"What?" Milly flustered.

"What?" Meryl burst out.

"_What?_" a galled voice shot out from the darkness.

Three heads spun around to see Millions Knives on his side staring, shocked and dumbfounded.

"You have to be joking, Vash," said Knives, appalled. "You're seriously not going to let a filthy spi…" suddenly he stopped. He glared dangerously at Vash. Milly felt Meryl move for the derringers. The spiky haired gunman narrowed his eyes and instantly Knives' face hardened. His eyes flashed to the two agents welling with disgust, but his attention was quickly brought back to his brother. He sneered and shot daggers form his icy eyes. Milly watched the communication with utter interest. She had a distinct feeling as to what was going on, but she didn't want to voice anything to her quick-tempered partner.

Both the women stared astonished at the various emotions that flashed like an old projector. Finally Knives let out a frustrated breath and a gritted agreement. Exhaling, Vash turned to his friends. He motioned with his hand for them both to enter and tuned on the much needed light. Milly bounced in with a smiled that promised nothing but sunshine and blue skies, and was soon followed by a short, glaring, violent storm.

-

Meryl Stryfe didn't like this; she didn't like this one bit. She was standing next to the Sixty Billion Double Dollar man watching, quite possibly, the last chess game she would ever see. It had only been a few minutes that the game had began between Knives and Milly, but she was growing more and more anxious. Oh how she hated the man she loved right now. What the hell was he thinking? Nothing that happened in the last hour made sense. Why did he want Milly, of all people, to play chess with Knives? Why was he even thinking about chess? Why was chess even in the picture? She asked him what he was planning but his only reply had been to trust him. _Trust him?_ Meryl though slightly irritated, _trust him, my ass. _She stared at the Stampede through the corner of her eyes. His face was hard set; she couldn't read anything, nor did she bother to try. His aqua orbs shifted constantly at the pieces calculating every possible outcome for each of the moves made. Meryl sighed inaudibly and turned back to the match. _I'm_ _never going to understand._

Meryl held the derringers in her hands tightly. She needed the reassurance of the small weapons now more than ever. Even if Milly was seemed naïve and gullible, Meryl knew the strength of her perceptiveness. She had watched the simple-minded girl play many times and never had she seen her loose. So if Milly did win, she didn't think Knives would accept defeat like a good sport._ But what happens if she does loose?_ Something told her that there was a lot riding on this match. Meryl bit her lip. Even though she had faith in her best friend, she couldn't help but wonder if she was underestimating the madman. After all, he was Vash's brother and he had managed to cause so much chaos and destruction. She eyed Knives curiously yet carefully. Every trace of disgust and hatred was wiped clean off his face, taken it's place was undisturbed concentration. Since she and Milly had set foot in the room, his face had been a carpet of distaste, even after the game started. When he realized, however, that Milly wasn't as stupid as he thought his entire participance changed. He focused on the game more intently; he made his choices more carefully. It was as if he was completely different person within a matter of seconds. It was truly frightening how much he reminded her of a certain gunman.

Vash shifted next to her pulling her out of her thoughts. Meryl looked at him, surprised to see a twinkle in his eye. She snapped her head back to the chess board just as Milly made her move. The childlike brunette smiled delightfully at a flabbergasted platinum blonde.

"Checkmate, Mr. Knives."

Meryl tightened her hold on her guns.

* * *

---

Next Chapter: Permanent Request

Hope you all enjoyed the chapter. It took me forever to write it, but I had fun. Hopefully I stayed ture to the original characters. Please review this chapter, I always appreciate any and all advice that you have to offer. And tell me if you didn't understand something, I have a tendency of confusing people, so don't be shy! Anyway, thanks for reading and review! I have a quick question: does anyone know where we can post review's responses, since writer's aren't allowed to post them in chapters anymore? If you do, do tell. Thanks.

--Phoenix--


	3. Permanent Request

---

Finally! Sorry I haven't updated in two weeks. With school started and my sister's weeding I've been kind of busy. I can't tell you exactly when I'll update next so if it isn't updated in a long time don't give up on it! Oh and I know my story seems a bit slow and boring in the beginning but believe me it gets better starting from the next chapter, so stick with me! Any way that's all I have to say for now, enjoy the story!

* * *

Disclaimer: Phoenix: Okay, today's disclaimer will be done by... (fumbles in black hat full of folded pieces of paper) drum roll please... (pulls one out) KNIVES! (applause)

Vash: Aww, Knives, you're so lucky!

Knives: (glares at Phoenix and Vash)I will not do it, you impudent child! I will not humiliate myself!

Phoenix: Yeah, Milly did that for you.

Vash, Meryl, audience: Oooooo

Phoenix: And besides you wouldn't want me telling them about your tutu now would you?

Knives: (white as a ghost) No! I'll do it!

Phoenix: Good boy.

Vash: What tutu?

Knives: Phoenix doesn't own Trigun. (mumbles Thank God)

Vash: What TUTU?

Phoenix: Enjoy the story everybody!

* * *

Permanent Request 

---

It wasn't possible. No, there was just no way. Knives stared at the scene before him, trying desperately to find an alternative for the outcome. There was none, he and his king were surrounded. How could he loose? He was playing against an inferior being. He was playing chess! It was surely a game too complex for a spider to comprehend, let alone win. But, the human had won and he had lost. Millions Knives had lost to a human, a human _woman_. He had been defeated for the second time in less than a month. He looked up at the human before him. She was quite large, for her kind. She was smiling gleefully at him, happiness gushing from the curves of her face. It made his stomach turn. Knives looked away, distaste fresh on his features, when she spoke,

"Good game Mr. Knives." she said, the smile never parting, "You're a good player, I hadn't had such a tough game in years!"

Knives looked at her. She was mocking him. This spider was mocking him! His insides twisted, it was bad enough that he had lost, but he was not going to be humiliated by garbage. But, what could he do now? He had been lying awkwardly on the bed even while playing. He was too weak to move, and he had no desire to aggravate hid wounds. He had no choice but to make his brothers blinded promise.

As though reading his mind, Knives had complete confidence he did, Vash spoke up,

"You lost Knives."

"Thank you for stating the obvious." Millions hissed shooting him a glare.

Vash ignored him "Now, do you promise?"

Knives pierced a little longer at his brother. He wasn't going to admit defeat so easily, especially to Vash.

"If I don't?" challenged Knives, "What if I kill her ri…"

The chance to finish was snatched away ferociously as Knives found himself staring down the cold barrel of a gun. He was surprised at the speed that this human maneuvered. Cocking an eyebrow he followed the hand up the arm and the curve of the shoulder to look at face of the weapon's owner. It was the other one, the shorter one. Her grey eyes narrowed at him when she met his pale blue orbs. He could feel her hatred for him like a bright beacon. Knives wasn't sure if this was supposed to aggravate him or frighten him, because it accomplished neither. He looked back at the weapon it was shaking under her grip. Knives shifted a dry laugh, she was terrified. Her knuckles had turned ghost white, her finger was trembling on the trigger. Knives smirked, she wouldn't kill him.

From the edge of his eyes, Vash moved coming up close behind her. Slowly he lifted a hand to her forearm, Knives twitched. The human stiffened, but quickly relaxed at the realization.

"Meryl," he said softly, "put the gun down."

The short one didn't acknowledge his request. Her frigid glared was still fixed on him and her midget of a gun still pointed in between his brows. Knives sniffed, what had his brother expected? Did he think that such irrational beings would listen to him? Humans were stupid, panicky and react without thought. He didn't expect any less from this one…

Then the small weapon was gone, leaving him staring blankly at the empty space. The human's hand hung limply at her side mimicking her head. Her dark hair covered her eyes and her breathing was forced to steady. Swiftly she turned and paced out the door. The tall human stood up calling out and hurried after her leaving Knives and his brother alone.

Knives let out a deep breath. He was glad they were gone sharing the same air as them was starting to suffocate him. He looked back at his outlaw brother. Vash was gazing at the floor, his aqua eyes darkened, at the spot where the human stood. Knives' face twisted, unable to believe the thought that was running through his mind… The idea was nauseating. He couldn't grasp such a thought. He could sense Vash's hushed thoughts. His emotions switched simultaneously, taking a hold and releasing. Vash didn't seem to know what to feel. Knives lay back on his bed; he couldn't look at his brother any longer. He focused his attention on the neutral ceiling. Vash shifted a moment later. He strolled up to him and faced down. He opened his mouth but Knives cut him off,

"I give you my word, Vash." he clenched through his teeth.

The Stampede looked fixedly at the broken half-plant, unsure if he heard right. Knives closed his eyes, barricading his mind. He heard Vash let out an emotionless breath, then a series of light footsteps followed and the creak of the door. He didn't hear the door squeak shut, his brother was still there. Eventually the faint click echoed through out the room, abandoning the defeated one. Knives emptied his thoughts; he didn't want to think about anything, he'd had enough for today.

-

Days passed since Knives regained his consciousness. He was healing quite nicely now that he was awake. The treatment from his twin, as much as he hated to admit, helped considerably. Vash brought him food three times everyday always making sure he finished each bite despite how angry he got. Of course the first few days Knives hadn't been so cooperative. He had refused to eat his meals. He would just glare at the perfectly made dish until Vash assured him that it wasn't poisoned. He didn't believe that, especially if it was made by his brother's human pets. But even the great Millions Knives could only fast for so long. His hunger had taken such a strong hold on him that he went against his prideful judgment and devoured his and Vash's meal in a matter of seconds. To his surprise his heart didn't stop, he wasn't paralyzed nor was his air way constricted. His actions left Vash laughing and saying something about an insurance girl seeing him eating donuts. Knives just shrugged it off. Although he refused to admit it, even to himself, the meal had been delicious. And almost each one after that was just as good.

After that day, his spiky haired sibling seemed to be in a better mood. He would smile idiotically at him as he ate. He would stay a little longer after Knives completed his portions, recalling every, small, pathetic detail of the few hours they were apart. Sometimes he would talk about his spider _friends_, as he liked to call them. He would talk especially about the short one, Maryiel or Miryl. It made Knives sick to his stomach, it was beyond wrong, but he forced himself to remain quiet. He, however, was more interested in the large one, Willy, or something along those lines. He had never lost a game of chess in his life and she had managed to wipe the floor with him in fifteen minutes. Even the low life captain of the _Seeds _ship had never managed that. But from what he heard, she was utterly brainless. She didn't know one thing from another most of the time, but she was very apparently perceptive. Knives snorted a perceptive spider? Vash was either being modest or he himself was becoming senseless.

It was also quit noisy outside the walls of his shared room. Usually the shrill sound of a female voice would pierce his sleeping thoughts. At the receiving end would almost always be his fool of a brother. Knives couldn't understand how he could tolerate the vermin. If he just allowed him to be rid of these pests, he would never have to go through such abuse. But Knives had a loathing feeling that Vash did it on purpose.

A soft knock on the door brought Knives back to the present. He looked at the small clock near his bed, it was ten fifteen. Knives furrowed his brows it was much too early for lunch. What did Vash want now? As much as he loved his brother, he was somewhat getting tired of hearing him talk. Knives remained quite, hoping his brother would get the message. Moments passed as silence once again occupied the room. The healing blonde turned back to the window to gaze at smoky sky.

A storm was headed towards the town, Vash had told him during breakfast. The wind was blowing hard and the streets were abandoned. Sand was flying fast causing whirlwinds of dust to sprout hear and there. He sighed; this was definitely not a good day to go out. Knives was tired of his room and wanted so much to breath fresh air, he was well enough to walk without Vash's help Of course the small window in his chamber brought in an occasional breeze, but sticking his head out wasn't as satisfying as actually being out. The only factor that was bothering him was the spiders. But what choice did he have? He made his brother a promise, and even after a century and a half later he still couldn't change his mind. Maybe if he played along with Vash's little request, the spiky haired blonde will see the truth by himself. Still just the thought of them made him sick.

Suddenly the door creaked behind him, Knives felt a familiar presence.

"What are _you_ doing here?" he asked grinding his teeth.

"Oh, you're awake." said an unsurprised, sickeningly sweet voice, "I thought you were asleep, Mr. Knives."

Knives turned to look at the human standing by the entrance. The tall insect was holding a tray of food with a stupid smile on her face. Knives wasn't very hungry but he still lost his appetite. Why was she bringing him lunch anyway? Where was Vash? Knives twisted his face; his lovely brother was probably with the short spider of his. Knives immediately closed his eyes and winced, desperately regretting his thoughts. He quickly cast off the gross images as he felt the human advanced towards him. He snapped open his eyes and daggered at her.

"_Don't _come near me."

The large spider stopped. For a second the smile on her face disappeared. She looked like she was trying to figure out why he was angry. That cherished second, however, didn't last long. She tilted her head and slapped on a double coat of honey on her new smile.

"Are you still grumpy about our game Mr. Knives?"

Knives stared at her. Grumpy? Was he _grumpy_? Despite his ice cold glares, the vermin walked towards him.

"Well if it makes you feel any better, Mr. Knives, I've lost too, before."

Did it really seem like he cared who beat her? Oblivious, she went on.

"My papa was the first one to beat me in chess. He was one who taught me how to play, and no matter how hard I tried I could never beat him!"

The human set the tray down on the small table. She was either very brave or very stupid to be so close to him. She didn't seem to fear him at the least.

"And the other person I lost to," she said widening her grin, "was me."

Knives' eyes widened. Had he heard her right?

"It's true," she said nodding her head "I've played so many times against myself, but I never win!"

The platinum blonde gaped at her. Vash wanted to her species to go on? Knives wondered if she even knew what just came out of her mouth. Knives looked at her as she continued to smile at him stupidly. Guess not. She picked up a full plate from the tray and held it out to him.

"I'm not hungry."

The plate lingered in front of him for a few moments then vanished. It was then replaced by a small cup of soft, creamy white, substance and a spoon.

"Are you deaf?" he growled "I said I'm not hungry"

This time the cup stayed. Knives narrowed his eyes at her. The human didn't budge. She stood with her arm outstretched firmly holding the cup. Knives looked away; he didn't want to waste his energy on garbage. Within seconds the cup was right back in his face. Knives let out an angry breath, she didn't know went to get the message.

-

"I wish you'd stop doing that, Insurance girl."

Meryl turned her gaze away from the stairs, glaring. Vash sat on the sofa stuffing his face with Milly's first and _last _(Meryl was going to make sure of it) invention, pudding-filled donuts.

"Doing what?" Meryl asked dangerously.

"Starwing." muffled Vash, "You ceep looking uf the stairs af if you're waithing for something."

Meryl stared at the outlaw, both disgusted at his actions and trying to understand what he just said.

"Yeah," she said finally "I'm waiting to hear Milly screaming."

Vash sighed picking up another cream-filled goodness.

"C'mon Meryl, she's fine." he said biting off a piece of the donut "He promised he wouldn't hurt anyone."

The disaster investigator nodded slightly, unconvinced, and looked back at the stairs. She really believed that Knives wouldn't change but she didn't say anything. Since the day he woke up she had been trying to avoid him and the subject of him. Vash was afraid she loathed him as much Knives loathed all humans. Milly however was as cheery and as glad as ever. She would ask how he was doing every morning, evening and night. She even offered to take him food today. Vash thought for a second, it was a strange request. It wasn't even time for lunch yet and he could've sworn she winked at Meryl before she dashed up the stairs leaving them alone.

"Vash?"

The Humanoid Typhoon looked up, chewing on the last of his donut.

"Before Knives woke up," Meryl went on, "you were going to tell me something. What was it?"

Vash narrowed his eye brows recalling the incident. Suddenly he smiled toothishly and ran his prosthetic hand through his hair.

" Oh that, I just wanted to say thanks."

"For what?"

"For telling Knives and I stay here and for taking care of us. You're a good friend, Meryl."

The smile that crept onto Meryl's face disappeared. But it was quickly renewed.

"Well I couldn't leave the Gunsmoke's biggest disaster to run around free, now could I? I have a job to do"

"No, I guess…"

Vash was cut off by a thunderous knock on the door. Both of them turned at the sound. Who would be out in a day like this? The wind was howling madly and the sand was ripping through roughly. Vash moved his left arm in front of him ready to defend if need be. He nodded to Meryl before to open the door.

A young boy with red hair, large glasses and freckles on his cheeks and nose stood against the powerful wind. He was having trouble keeping himself on the ground as he struggled with the large bag on his side.

"Sorry for the intrusion, ma'am!" the boy shouted over the gust, "but I believe this is your mail!"

Vash relaxed, and walked up behind Meryl. The boy pulled out a small envelope from the bag and handed it to the insurance agent. She stared at the envelope for a moment than looked up at the boy and thanked him. Quickly, she shut the door and walked back to the couch. Furiously, she ripped open the seal and slipped the folded piece of paper out.

"Who's it from?" asked Vash, surprised at her sudden impatience.

"Bernadelli." She said unfolding the letter.

Vash's stomach sunk, what did that mean? Was she leaving? The scurry of footsteps drew Vash's attention to the stairs. Milly descended quickly and rushed over to Meryl's shoulder.

"What does it say Sempai?"

Meryl remained quiet. Her eyes darted at every sentence as she scanned the neatly typed letter. Slowly she narrowed her brows and pressed her lips together. She wiped her face blank and carefully brought the letter down to her lap.

"Sempai?"

Without a word, Meryl handed the paper to Milly. The tall girl hesitated before taking it and began to read. She too scanned the writings quickly, but her reaction was the complete opposite of Meryl's. Her face brightened as she clapped her hands together.

"Oh, Sempai!" she chirped, eyes glittering.

"I can't believe it either." said Meryl.

Vash stood in impatient silence waiting for an explanation. Suddenly Meryl turned to Vash and smirked.

"Well Mr. Stampede today is your lucky day."

She handed the letter to him. One bolded sentence caught Vash's attention immediately, his eyes widened.

"The Bernadelli Insurance Company requests that you, Meryl Stryfe and Milly Thompson, trail Vash the Stampede, permanently until further notice." he read aloud.

He looked up at the insurance girls to see one with a joyous grin on her features and the other with an irritated yet warm smile.

"Looks like we're stuck with you." the petite woman said crossing her arms.

"Aww, man!" he wined, "Just when I thought I…"

A booming pain shook Vash as he found himself on the floor. Meryl stood over him, eyes red and face mirroring the devils'.

"_What did you say, needle brain?"_

"Nothing." he squealed.

* * *

---

Next Chapter: Death of an Angel

End of chapter three! I hope you enjoyed it! Please, please, PLEASE, review. I need the encouragement! And those of you who have reviewed, many, many thanks, they alwaysmake my day! I know it's a bit slow but like I said it gets better. Any help or advice is always appreciated. And again, REVIEW! Thanks!

--Phoenix--


	4. Death of an Angel

---

Hey, I know I've already posted this chapter, but I needed to make a few changes. They're not major but they were just seriously bugging me and I changed the title for the next chapter. Anyway, like I said before, thank you everyone for reviewing! Sorry for not posting for a long time I've been really busy.

* * *

Disclaimer: Vash: (laughing) Uh, Pheonix (laugh) isn't here right now (laugh) so Meryl will be doing (laugh)the disclaimer. 

Meryl: Huh, what?

Vash: (laughing) The disclaimer...

Meryl: Oh, uh, Pheonix doesn't own Trigun...where is Pheonix anytway?And why the hell are you laughing?

Vash: (still laughing)

Milly: Pheonix is out running from Mr. Knives.

Meryl: Running?

Milly: She showed Mr. Vash a picture of him in a tutu.

Meryl: Knives... in a tutu? (stares at Vash, rolling over on the floor) I wanna see!

* * *

Death of an Angel 

---

"VASH, WHAT THE HELL DID YOU DO, NOW?"

A bullet ripped through the air barely missing Meryl Stryfe, and shattered a near by table. She ducked covering her head to escape the shower of splinters directed her way.

"I didn't do anything!" the infamous Vash the Stampede squealed. He dived behind the bar counter, narrowly missing hot lead. "I only asked if they had any donuts, and they just started shooting at me!"

Meryl rolled her eyes, sometimes he really annoyed her. She scanned the half destroyed bar for the remainder of the gunmen they were up against. Five already lay unconscious on the ground; Vash had taken care of them before she arrived but three were still up and heavily armed. A fat one with clothes that were a bit too small was standing at the door holding two guns larger than him. Another one was hiding behind a large round table across the room with a colt like Vash's, but his aim was terrible. _He should be easy to take care of_. The third one however was nowhere to be seen, and Meryl was running out of ammunition.

She shot one more bullet at the fat one and ran to duck behind the bar with the legendary Stampede. Vash shot at the fat one's hand managing to knock one of his guns out of his grip. He cried out in shock and stammered back. Taking the advantage, Vash jumped up from behind the counter and kicked him in the face. The overweight man stood still for a moment without moving, almost counting the stars dancing around him, then his eyes rolled into his head and he fell backwards rattling the floorboards. _One down, two to go_, Meryl thought and pulled out another trademark derringer. From behind the counter she carefully sneaked out. She aimed at the gunmen on the other side of the barrier and fired.

Bull's-eye. The bullet made its ways cleanly through the room finding its mark in the man's thigh. He screamed in pain and pulled the trigger, aiming the gun blindly towards petite woman. She froze and for a split second she saw the bullet rushing at her. The next thing she knew the world around her twisted and a shrill scream filled the room. Meryl snapped open her tightly shut eyes. Her face was glued to the floor with something cupping the back of her head. She forced her face up to find yellow spikes fill her vision. _Vash?_

The outlaw was lying beside her, one arm across her head and one arm in the air behind him, with his smoking colt attached to his hand. Silence rung loudly as moments passed yet Vash didn't move. His arm still hung in the air and Meryl was still trapped and confused underneath his prosthetic arm. Suddenly something crashed loudly behind her. Vash removed his arm and pushed himself off the floor. He extended a hand to Meryl and pulled her up. Once vertical, Meryl looked down to find a thin, red haired woman sprawled across the floor with a gun in her hand a bullet hole in her shoulder.

"Is she…?" Meryl began.

"No, just out cold."

Immediately Vash's face lit up and his eyes glittered like diamonds,

"But she's the most beautiful woman I've ever seen! Why her---?"

Without warning Meryl landed a hard blow perfectly on top of Vash's head. If the act hadn't been so violent, it could've been considered art. She flushed red with anger and another emotion she was much too used to. Vash whimpered and stared at her bewilderedly.

"What was that for?"

"In a _bar_, Vash? You asked for donuts, in a bar?"

"Well," he started apologetically, "the donut shop was closed and I really wanted…"

Vash trailed of, shrinking at the cold glare coming from the insurance agent. Meryl growled in frustration and stamped off, stepping casually over the grounded bodies. Why did her day have to start like this?

The day was beautiful. The sky was blue, the birds were singing, children were playing happily in the streets and the town bar was destroyed in a fight. People were going to want answers for this, some very angry, sober, people and somebody would have to answer them. Yes, the day was truly beautiful.

Meryl and Vash made their way through the dusty roads. The insurance agent was calmer now but she still shot daggers at the tall blonde, who smiled nervously and looked away. Meryl sighed, just another day living with Vash the Stampede.

Three years had passed since the letter from Bernadelli arrived that stormy day. Even now Stryfe could remember her hands shaking as she opened the envelope. A thousand questions ran through her mind, Meryl had tried so hard to stay calm. Her heart almost leapt out of her chest when she read it, she could hardly believe what her higher officials were asking her to do. Other letters have come since then, but none taking her and Milly Thompson of off Vash's case, not that Meryl was complaining. Still, every time she had to report back to headquarters she'd wonder what she should write about. Their travels weren't so disastrous anymore and due to that she feared they would be removed from trailing the outlaw. Life had gotten so much better and she couldn't bare the thought of leaving it behind. She was happier now, sometimes even carefree. The heavy burdens once put on her shoulders were gone. She went days without stress or pain. But living with her infamous assignment always brought some kind of excitement.

Vash was the same as ever… but somehow he was different. He was still the annoying, clumsy, spiky haired, donut craving, _skirt chasing,_ man she fell for, but different, he seemed happy. She hadn't seen him put on one of his masks in ages. He didn't hide things anymore and he laughed and smiled like there wasn't a care in the world. Naturally, bounty hunters and the law were still out to get him, but that was all in a days work. Even a bar fight like the one they just had was rare. Whatever the reason for his change, Meryl was glad. Of course some things didn't change, like his insuperable love for donuts and alcohol. The drinking thing hadn't been so bad lately; he'd only get drunk few days a week, but the donuts! Meryl just couldn't see what was so great about a center-less piece of cake covered in topping. Unfortunately she made the mistake of voicing her opinion one day. Vash had stared at her in utter disbelief with his face covered in pink sprinkles. She also got looks form Milly sharing Vash's disbelief and Knives because…well, it's Knives.

The duo reached the home they had temporarily rented. A kind, rich, elderly couple had offered it to them at quite a cheap price after Knives saved their granddaughter, Stephanie, from a gang of bandits. The rescue had been on accident and Knives wasn't about to take credit for saving a human. The other three, however, had quickly accepted with great appreciation before he had a chance to open his mouth. The granddaughter, a beautiful blonde girl, had been especially thankful, a little too thankful for Knives' liking. She even called Millions Knives her hero. Meryl chuckled at the memory of Knives' face that day, he looked like he wanted the passing steamer to run him over… and over… and over.

A dry scent filled Meryl's nostrils as she entered the comfortable living room. Compared to all of the places the group had to stay in, this house was a palace. The furnishings weren't torn or questionably discolored; the floors weren't cracked and dingy and the walls weren't crumbling or crawling with unidentified who-knows what. But best of all, in Meryl's opinion, was the bedding. What ever the sheets and pillows were made from, they were definitely not of this world. The covers were so soft to the touch, the instant she touched the surface of the bed she was out cold. Just the thought of her gigantic cloud of a bed made her drowsy.

"Lose another game, Knives?"

Vash's voice snapped Meryl out of her trance. The platinum blonde brother sat in the oversized sofa staring at a played chess game. Knives growled at Vash and gingerly picked up his defeated black king. His eyes swept over the chess board calculating all possibilities of a different outcome of the game that could've been. Meryl recalled the first time she saw Knives like this, the day Milly first defeated him. He was so furious she thought he'd kill her for sure. Now, he still didn't except defeat but he wasn't going to go on a killing frenzy either. Knives too, much to Meryl's surprise, had become different. The change in him was gradual, very gradual; it took the trio months to get Knives to stop calling her and Milly spiders. But he definitely wasn't the same Knives she knew three years ago. His distaste of humans hadn't left completely, but he somewhat accepted the fact that he had to share this desolate planet with them. Although if any human, other than Milly or Meryl, gets with in ten feet of him they will receive a grand order of cold glares with a side of a few frightening threats.

"Oh, Sempai, Mr. Vash, you're back."

Meryl looked up to find a short haired Milly Thompson smiling sweetly with an apron tied around her waist and a wooden spoon in her hand. Meryl face fell, she was cooking?

"Uh, yeah. Milly… you're cooking?"

"Uh-huh, Miss Stephanie wanted to know how to make pasta so I thought I'd teach her how."

"Milly, do you even know how to make pasta?" Vash asked sitting down next to Knives.

Milly thought for a second before saying,

"Well, don't you fry some pasta and boil some meat and then put it together?"

Meryl sighed, the boys were so lucky Milly wasn't the one who usually cooks.

"Milly, how about I teach you and Stephanie both how to make pasta?"

"Yay!" Milly chirped, clapping her hands. "That'd would be wonderful, Sempai!"

Meryl smiled and took the apron from her friend. As she tied the flowery cloth around herself she asked,

"So, where is the pasta?"

"In the frying pan."

Meryl stopped and stared at her friend. She put her hand on her back and gently pushed.

"Let's go Milly. You have a lot to learn."

-

Vash smiled as he watched the two women disappear into the kitchen. He leaned back into the sofa and watched his brother replace all the pieces to their original posts.

"Game?" Knives asked, looking up.

"What? You want to loose twice in one day?" Vash challenged.

Knives raised an eyebrow cockily. He got up and sat down on the opposite side.

"You're move."

Vash moved his pawn up two. Knives immediately followed up with his own black pawn blocking Vash's. _You're going to lose Knives_, Vash moved his knight into play. _That's what you said the last time, _again Knives copied Vash's move with his knight. _Yes, but I've gotten better since then_, Vash moved the other knight, placing it straight across from Knives'. _Vash, I played you last week and you cried like an annoying human child_, once more Knives mirrored Vash's move. The four knights now stood facing the enemy across the board. Vash paced his chin in his hand and stared at the board for a while. Then he picked up his bishop and slid him over the board, _I've been practicing, Knives_. Knives moved his black horse next to Vash's pawn, _No, you haven't. You're making the same mistakes_. In a fatal swoop, Vash kicked Knives' pawn and replaced his post with his knight, _You were saying? _Knives picked up his queen, _A small sacrifice_, and placed her between her soldiers. _You're moving you're queen so soon? _Vash asked, contemplating his next move. Just as he picked up one of his knights a thunderous knock rattled the door. Two envelopes slipped from the crack at the bottom. Replacing his knight where he found it, Vash got up to fetch the two covers.

"Who's it from?"

"Bernadelli," Vash read, "and…Jessica?"

Immediately Vash's face lit up. He threw the letter from Bernadelli to the ground and ripped open the other one. He bounced onto the sofa and read:

_Dear Vash,_

_How are you? We're doing just great. It's been a long time since the last time you came to visit, we all miss you. So I just thought I should tell you come see Seed City. I can't believe how different people are now that they're living on land. I think it's safe to say they're happy. Anyway the Doctor also wanted to talk to you about something, he won't tell me what, says it's need-to-know-information. I never get to know what's going on! Anyway I hope you can make it soon. Oh, and I also a surprise for you._

_Lots of Love,_

_Jessica._

_P.S. Say hi to your priest friend for me._

Vash stared at the letter half-heartedly. He was happy to hear from Jessica, but her letter brought back painful memories. Vash swallowed hard and pushed his thoughts aside rereading the letter. _Seed City_, he thought almost smiling, _named after the ship. I guess it has a nice ring to it._ He skimmed over the message once more letting his eyes linger. _Need-to-know-information, what does that mean?_ Vash thought. The only thing he could think of was that the Doc might've invented a new arm.

"Are you going to tell me what it says or not?"

Vash looked up from the letter to find Knives staring fixedly at him. He hesitated, unsure of Knives reaction. Even if he didn't show anything, Knives certainly felt a little something about what happened with the residents of the ship.

"We have to go to Seed City." he answered finally.

Knives stared of blankly for a moment, then he quietly got up and made his way to the stairs.

"We should leave soon then. There's supposed to be a storm coming in."

With that he disappeared into his room. Vash watched him until the door was shut and locked. Vash turned back to the letter in his hand. He set it down next to the abandoned chess game and got up to tell Meryl and Milly about the move. He really wanted to beat Knives this time, but that would have to wait.

-

The journey to Seed City started right after lunch. Milly and Meryl packed their things and a bit of food for the road. Meryl was less than trilled about the sudden move but Milly was delighted that she was finally going to meet his 'family'.

The elderly couple was disappointed to see them leaving but they welcomed them back anytime. Stephanie was sad, to put it lightly, to see her hero leaving. She clung to Knives like a leach and promised to him that she would write everyday. Knives could not have been more thankful that the girl had no idea where he was going.

Knives wasn't lying when he said a storm was coming. Just as they neared night fall monstrous black clouds loomed over them. Lightening flashed and thunder boomed and gusts of wind threatened to throw the small jeep off its wheels. They found a small town and took shelter for the night. The storm cleared the next day and the four of them resumed their two day trip to Seed City. Vash could hardly wait to see his friends again. He could hardly wait to return home.

By noon the city was in their sight. It was magnificent. Vash couldn't believe that they managed to build such a city in three years. Even in the distance Vash could see the buildings rise high and mighty into the sky. The two plants that survived seemed to be keeping the city running. As they entered the city, a group of people awaited them.

"Vash!"

A bubbly young girl, with auburn hair jumped up and down waving her hands frantically.

"Vash! I can't believe you came!"

Vash was barely out of the vehicle when the girl jumped on him knocking him over.

"Hey it's good to see you too, Jessica." Vash said, struggling beneath her grip. "I see you haven't lost your enthusiasm."

"Jessica, I think you should let Vash breath."

A short, bald man in a brown coat stepped forward. He smiled happily at the spiky haired blonde.

"Hey, Doc. Long time no see."

"Yes, well, it should've been you coming to visit. Do you need an invitation every time?"

Vash rubbed the back of his neck and smiled apologetically. Behind him Meryl cleared her throat loudly. She slipped out of the jeep and folded her arms across her chest.

"Oh," jumped Vash, "this is Meryl Stryfe and Milly Thompson."

Meryl smiled at the group and Milly chirped a quick hello.

"And this," Vash turned to his brother, "is…"

Vash hesitated. Should he tell them who Knives really is? He was sure some of them already knew, so there was no point in lying, but still… His brother climbed out from the back seat of the jeep. His face was blank and empty. If he was feeling anything, he was doing a very good job of not showing it.

"Knives." the Doctor finished.

To Vash's surprise the doctor smiled gently at the other brother.

"We know who he is Vash, we also know what happened." said Jessica.

"But what is done is done, it is in the past, we can talk about that later." said the Doctor, "Right now I have to talk with Vash."

The small man turned to the group behind him. He spoke quietly to them and with a nod of his head they dispersed. Before they left a few of them glance strangely at Knives but quickly turned away. Then the old man turned to Jessica,

"Take Miss. Stryfe and Miss. Thompson to the guest house. Help them settle in then take them out and show them around, okay?"

"But, I wanted…" Jessica began.

"Jessica." the doctor commanded.

"Yes, sir." she said softly.

"What about Mr. Knives?" Milly asked.

Knives shot Milly a look but stayed quiet.

"I think he should come with us. He should probably know this--"

Suddenly an explosion rattled the city. Instinctively Vash grabbed Jessica and crouched against the jeep, covering her head. Meryl and the doctor fell to the ground clutching their heads. Milly and Knives disappeared in the cloud of dust. Seconds passed and screams burst out. The dust cleared slowly but Vash was already on his feet. Knives, from the other side of the vehicle, pulled himself and Milly up.

"What the hell was that?" Meryl shouted, shaking the ringing from her ears.

"It came… it came from the direction of the plant." the Doctor coughed, pushing himself off the ground.

Vash and Knives immediately took off running toward the explosion. Vash tried hard to communicate with the plant but reached nothing. He reached for his gun and ran faster.

A crowd had already gathered around the Plant. Children were crying and a few women were screaming. Vash halted to a stop next to his brother. His eyes widened, he began to tremble. Bodies were scattered across the dirt ground, limbs missing, blood sprayed. Glass covered the street and bodies. Vash slowly looked up at the giant bulb, he froze. The caged angel lay at the bottom of the giant bulb, the bright glow diminished forever. Vash the Stampede stared at the lifeless figure blankly, the Plant before him was dead.

* * *

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Next Chapter: Enemy

So that was chapter four. As usual read and review. I feel like this chapter was a bit rushed but maybe it's just me anyway review please! BTW, I'm not good at writing action scenes so forgive me if they stink!

--Pheonix--


	5. Enemy

Hey everybody! Sorry to all of you who had faith in me to finish this, 'cuz really I didn't have faith in myself. Well anyway here's the fifth chapter, I hope you like it. I think I lost it a little bit, but I'll get it back as long as I keep writing! As always thank you for the reviews,even after all this time they're are my one true motivation! Thank you! Enjoy! Oh, sorry for any stupid mistakes!

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Enemy

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Six occupants sat around the brightly lit room pondering the news.

"The Plants are being killed, Vash," the Doctor told them, "That's why I'd wanted you to come to Seed City, so I could tell you."

No one spoke. Jessica sobbed quietly into Meryl's shoulder. The Doctor didn't want to tell her this, but after what she saw she deserved an explanation, all of Seed City did. He left to tell the rest of the city what was happening. He didn't tell them how he knew, they needed time to swallow this first then they can know everything else.

Meryl said nothing. Her mind wasn't with her. It was still back at the explosion. The picture of the dead Plant and people just wouldn't escape her thoughts. The scene was all too familiar. She stole a glimpse at the famous Typhoon. His face was a canvas and his eyes were cast down. Meryl sighed and closed her own. Why do things like this always happen to Vash the Stampede? He'd just come back home he'd been dreaming about and they…

Knives concentrated on the pain in his hand, the sting of the antiseptic and the pull of the cloth. He had walked up to the Plant and kneeled down beside it. He tried so desperately to reach it even though he knew nothing would answer back. Anger bubbled violently at his throat. Ungrateful parasites! Humans! Those disgusting good for- He stopped, to his great surprise he stopped. He didn't want to believe himself; he wouldn't allow himself to go on thinking what he was. As much as Knives hated to admit it, the Plants needed the humans as much as the humans needed the Plants. They can't survive out in the open and the people can't survive without power. They needed each other and the humans would only be killing themselves if they destroyed the Plants. However, Knives was still outraged; whoever did this would pay, dearly. He looked down at the Plant, studying it. A shard of glass stuck up from its arm, a river of shimmer flowing from the wound. Knives pulled it out effortlessly. A thin layer of blood dripped to the ground. He stared at it then crushed it absent mindedly in his hand. He didn't say a word to anyone after that, not even Vash. He was afraid of opening his mouth before he was absolutely sure he wouldn't do anything irrational.

He felt the cloth loosen for the hundredth time, tighten again, then loosen. _Milly_ Her mind was a jumble. Her thoughts were starting to give him a headache, but he said nothing. If it had been anyone else, he would have probably pulled off their head. He'd somewhat come to understand her uniqueness. She was the only human he can stand talking to. She acted stupid, yes, but she really was perceptive. Knives cleared his thoughts, he didn't want to think. He was getting the same spine tingling feeling he's been getting for a while and he didn't want to deal with it now. He sat in the room and continued to glance off into the distance silently as if he didn't exist.

Vash was quiet as well, but when he saw the dead Plant every dreadful feeling he'd had came crashing back. He tried so had to convince himself that the horrific sight was just a dream. He prayed that it was his conscience was playing a cruel joke on him. Yet, the screaming was too real, the cries were all too real, the blood, the DEATH…real. Vash fell to his knees forgotten tears flowing down his cheeks. _Dead,_ the Plant was dead. His friends were dead. They were all dead. This was supposed to end a long time ago. He'd had been fighting against his own brother for peace for over a century and for three sweet years he actually had it. He felt it around him everyday. Vash was so close to his Rem's Eden. Now it was gone again, snatched away just like she was. Who would do this? Who could be so evil? Knives had nothing to do with it, Vash had no doubt. His brother might not be perfect but he was a different person, he wasn't a killer anymore. He looked over at Knives, staring blankly off into space. He shut off all entry to his mind, so Vash couldn't even feel what he was thinking and he didn't want to force him. Milly was dressing his wounds, she was the only human he'd ever let touch his wounds. She tied the cloth over his hand, untied it, readjusted the cloth, wound it, tied it and untied it again. He couldn't imagine what was going on through her mind, he didn't bother guessing either. She was a strong girl, stronger than anyone he knew. Vash thoughts shifted to the youngest person in the room. Every time he's near her someone close to her dies. First Brad, now her friends and she deserved none of it. Jessica was crying onto Meryl's shoulder, it hurt to see her cry. He remembered her smiling everyday when she was younger, now all he saw in her eyes were tears. He wanted to make it stop, make everything peaceful, but that dream seemed impossible to reach. Vash looked at the raven haired woman whose arm cupped Jessica's shoulders. He'd seen that look on her face before, the mask. She was trying to be strong when inside she hurt. It pained Vash to see her do that, he knew she didn't like to let her feelings out. He wanted to go to her, put his arms around her, kiss her… but he sat still. Too much could be at stake, she could be in danger; _all_ of them could be in danger. He might never have a chance to tell her how he had come to feel, but she would be alive.

Milly liked to work when something bad happened so she wouldn't have time to think about them. She was relieved when she had to clean and dress Mr. Knives' wound. She concentrated harder than she had to, to find all the pieces that made their way into his skin. The blood on the glass pieces didn't help her situation. It reminded her of the people laying on the ground, children crying at their parent's bodies. They were so small and they had to see their parents die. She wished so desperately she could give them a cup of pudding; it always makes people feel good. She sighed softly, how she wanted a cup for herself. Milly apologized like mad whenever she'd yank a shard. Not surprisingly, Mr. Knives didn't acknowledge her. She new what he was trying to do, he was trying to contain his anger. He used to do that a lot when he was healing from his fight with Mr. Vash. Mr. Vash… She knew he was probably blaming himself for what happened, because that's what he did, he always blamed himself. Still, she didn't have the strength to say anything, she kept quiet. Once she had the pieces out, she cleaned the wound and tied it with a cloth. No matter how many times she tied the cloth, it just wouldn't look right, so she'd unwind and wind it again and again. At least it kept her mind busy.

The door suddenly burst open. A young man with blonde hair stood panting. He scanned the room frantically, sweat dripping form his face. When he spotted Jessica he ran to her,

"Jessica!"

Jessica stood up at the sound of her name. She threw her arms around him and hugged him tightly.

"I came as soon as I heard the explosion," he said, hugging her back, "Are you okay?"

"Yes. But the plant…" she cried into his shoulder.

"Eric," the Doctor said walking behind him, "I think you should take Jessica home."

Without any objection the blonde man lead her away. The Doctor entered the room and shut the door behind him. He waited a while for someone to say something, but no one spoke. They were all lost in their own worlds. Sighing, he finally said,

"I think we've had enough for today. It would probably be best if we--"

"No, Doc," Vash said, "You have to tell us everything you know."

His voice sounded so lifeless it hurt the old man. For so long he hoped to see him happy and for a few minutes he actually had. He knew before that telling him why he wanted called him to Seed City would hurt him and the thought killed him, but now it was only going to get worse. He let out a deep breath and made his way to a chair.

"It started about a month ago," he began, "A plant was destroyed in April City. The city thought it was a malfunction in the system. Many people were killed and so was the plant. The authorities looked into it but found nothing that could've gone wrong, technically at least. A week before however, all their plants started acting strange. The power to the city would keep fluctuating. For almost a day there was no power. At night they would hear singing coming form the plants. Then the first plant exploded and in two more weeks the second one was destroyed. They knew it wasn't a malfunction this time because they found a calling card."

Vash looked up, calling card?

"The Jack of Hearts."

"The Jack of Hearts?" said Meryl, "You mean from a deck of cards?"

"Yes," the Doctor said, relieved that someone spoke. The silence was unbearable. "But, there's more," the Doctor continued, "On the back of the card, there was a message: _Roses are red, violets are blue; run, because I'm coming after you._"

Silence clouded the room once again, but the Doctor's story caught everyone's attention, even Knives'. Vash was especially attentive. He had seen this calling before, a long, long time ago. But, it can't be possible, he would never… he couldn't, how could he? He's… or should be…

"Wait," Meryl suddenly spoke up, "I've heard of the Jack of Hearts."

She put her head down, searching her memory, "He was a thief about fifty years ago. He was almost as big as Vash, but he never killed anyone, he only stole. It can't be him, can it?"

No one answered her. Finally Vash said quietly,

"No, the Jack of Hearts is dead," his voice dropped, "I saw him die."

Vash took out his orange sunglasses from his pocket. Meryl's heart sank when he slipped them on. She thought she saw the last of them and his heartache, but it was never that simple. She did nothing as Vash got up and walked to the door. She sat quietly as he opened it and walked out, hating herself for her weakness. Her eyes stung with tears as she watched him disappear into the deserted hallway. Why was it always like this?

-

It was supposed to be a great day. He wanted to catch up with old friends. He wanted to walk around town and see what they've accomplished. He wanted to have a few drinks with his brother and the girls. He wanted to know what this surprise was Jessica had for him. He wanted… He wanted to fell like he was home. Was that too much to ask? He knew the last three years were too good to be true. A life that serine and painless was not destined for him. Vash looked at the floor through the orange tinted glasses, he sometimes wondered if it would've been better if Rem hadn't saved him and his brother. He quickly shook his head of his thoughts.

Two days passed since the plant was killed. Everyone was uneasy in the city. The streets were abandoned most of the time, even children refused to come out and play. But no one was blaming Vash or his brother. The plant that was still alive had a hard time keeping the city running, but it quickly eased into supporting the city. Vash made sure to check on it at least three times a day and make sure it was alright.

Vash sat on the chair in the guest house, his focus on what he had heard from the Doctor. The Jack of Hearts. Vash knew the Jack of Hearts; he was a friend of his. He knew for a fact that it wasn't the man he befriended all those years ago. He'd seen him die with his own eyes. And if it was Jack, he would never kill anyone. Vash sighed and closed his eyes remembering the first time he met Jack in the city of April.

Vash had been in a bar, dragging out the last sip of his drink. The door jingled announcing the entrance of three men and their mean heavy bodyguards. The music stopped and the entire bar fell silent. It was the kind of scene Vash expected to read in a cheap cowboy novel. They came up to the bar counter, right behind him. He could feel the drunken power of the three men reek. One of them, a big man with an expensive coat, motioned to a tall muscular man. Quickly he stepped up, grabbed a hand full of Vash's coat and threw him aside, leaving no time for Vash to finish the last drop in his glass. The three men laughed like it was the joke of the century, their mouths wide open and their middles bouncing.

"That wasn't very nice, mister." said Vash picking himself up.

The three men stopped laughing simultaneously; they looked at him as if it was an insult to having him talk to them. One of the bodyguards' growled and stepped between the three men and Vash.

"What did you say?"

"I said that wasn't very nice."

The man narrowed his eyes. He grabbed the front of Vash's collar and yanked it to his face.

"Do you know who you're talking to?"

"No sir, and I really don't care," Vash said evenly, "But that was still rude. A simple 'excuse me' would've done. I think they really need to learn some manners."

"You sonova--"

The bodyguard pulled out a gun from his side aimed it at Vash. The rest, like obedient dogs, did the same. The women in the bar screamed and tried to find the quickest way out. Some of the men followed them but others stayed to watch the show. Vash put up his hands immediately,

"Now, there's no need to start a fight, now is there?"

"Begging for your life, are ya punk?" the guard snarled "Well too late for tha--"

His gun was out of his hands and on the other side of the counter before he finished his sentence. The man stared blankly at his empty hand. He looked up just as Vash brought his gun around to the side of his head. Before the others had time to pull their triggers, Vash shot all of their guns out of their hands. He two of the bodyguards in the shin and elbowed the last one in the stomach. They went down like a house of cards. The three men stood still gawking at their unconscious bodyguards on the floor. Vash stepped up towering a good three feet over them, his face wiped clean. Almost instantly, they coward at his gaze,

"We apologize," one said clearing his throat nervously, "our men were just doing their job."

"What can we do to show our deepest regret for the way they behaved?" another one squeaked, trembling. Vash was waiting to see the last strings of hair fall out. He slammed his and on the bar counter, making them jump. He dragged his hand to the edge and shoved it in the balding one's face.

"Just pay the bill," he said wiggling a piece of paper.

The man took the paper form his hand, shaking and sweating. Vash flashed a toothy smile throwing the three men off guard and walked out of the bar.

"That was quite a shot there," Vash said to the boy walking in front of him, "I didn't even see you pull out your gun. Thanks."

The boy stopped and turned around. It was him who shot the big bodyguard. Vash was thankful; it could've gotten a lot bloodier than it had to if it weren't for him. His shot was impressive; people his age usually don't shoot that accurately at such a distance.

"No need to thank me, I didn't do it to help you," he said, "That's my uncle's bar. He has enough trouble with it, the last thing he needs is people shooting up the place."

His hair and his eyes matched his light brown skin. He wore a sandy colored shirt and a brown hat. Most people would've guessed him to be about twenty-five, twenty-six, but he was younger than he looked, maybe seventeen or eighteen. The only reason Vash came to that conclusion was because a few days before he saw him with his friends who looked their age. What twenty-five year old hang around bunch of seventeen year olds?

"Thanks anyway," Vash said.

"Is that all?" the boy asked irritated.

"Yeah."

The boy turned around and walked away just as a gun shot echoed through the town…

-

A gust of wind whipped into the room bringing Vash back to reality. He looked up as his chair almost tipped over. A petite figure fought her way inside, her feet barely staying on the ground. She pushed hard against the door to shut it, but her strength was nothing compared to the storm. Vash rushed over and even with his strength, it took a while for it to shut.

"Where did that sand storm come from?" Meryl asked, clearing the sand out of her clothes, "I was just at the store and out of nowhere…what's wrong Vash?"

"Nothing, I'm fine." Vash said blinking furiously and wiping tears from his eyes.

"Don't lie to me Vash, tell me what's wrong."

Vash was taken aback at the seriousness of her voice. He looked through the water in his eyes at her. She was frowning, but he could see the worry in her eyes, it made his stomach flip.

"It's nothing, Meryl. It's just sand in my eyes," Vash said rubbing his eyes.

A second later he felt a sharp pain at the side of his arm.

"Well then don't rub it needle brain!"

"But I want it out!"

Meryl growled in irritation and ordered him to sit down.

"Hold still," she said, "and don't close your eyes so tightly."

He loosened his eyes a little bit. Meryl used her thumb and forefinger to open Vash's eye as wide as possible,

"My mother used to do this when I was younger, so hopefully I do this right."

She blew gently but swiftly into his eye. Vash flinched and Meryl let go. He blinked several times and opened one eye.

"It's gone."

"Good. Now, the other eye."

Meryl opened his other eye and blew gently again and let go. He blinked and opened his eye.

"Wow Meryl, thanks. Didn't know you had nurturing in you."

Meryl said nothing. She stared at him sternly, frowning. Sighing, she picked up her coat.

"Next time, tell if something is wrong," she said quietly.

Vash stood rooted to the ground, confused. She sounded hurt. He watched her dust her coat of sand that wasn't there anymore. Her face was hidden behind her hair, making it hard for Vash to see what exactly she meant.

"Meryl…" Vash began taking a step towards her, "what…"

"Mr. Vash," Milly's candy voice called as she stepped through the hallway door, "Mr. Knives wants… Sempai! You're here! Good. Mr. Knives wants to see you and Mr. Vash."

"See us? Why?" Meryl asked, dropping her coat on the couch.

Her face was wiped clean when she turned around, almost as if she never said anything. Vash cursed himself inwardly; he was rubbing off on her too much.

"I'm not sure exactly. We were talking about going to April City and then he told me to come get Mr. Vash and you."

"Going to April City?" asked Vash astonished.

He thought about going to April himself, but he didn't know how to tell or ask his brother and the girls.

"Are you coming, Vash?" Meryl asked impatiently.

Vash nodded and followed her and Milly into he hall.

-

Knives couldn't sit around and do nothing anymore. Plant were dying everywhere… his family was dying and it had to stop. Nothing was getting accomplished around here, people barely stepped outside. April was the best place to start. Hopefully they find some clues to the bastard who's doing this. Knives smiled imagining ripping off the face of monster responsible for these deaths. Vash already was thinking about going, Meryl and Milly wouldn't object. He wasn't sure if he wanted the girls to go. A blind man could see that whoever this was, he was after him and his brother and he wasn't afraid to kill innocents to get to them.

"No," Knives decided to himself.

Knives was sitting in the Doctor's office waiting for his brother and Meryl. He explained to the Doctor his plans and immediately the old man went off to arrange their transportation to April City. Knives sighed, it mad him sick how well they treated him. Not one disgusted look, not one whisper behind his back, nothing. He was starting to suspect something. Knives hated to think that, but after all that he'd done to them, there was no possible way that they would show so much respect and kindness.

Vash said that this was their ship, their home, their family, but Knives killed one of them! It was ridicules! How could they—the door opened. Knives looked up. It was that boy, Eric. He looked at Knives and frowned.

"Is it true?" he asked walking into the room.

"What?"

"You're going to April City?"

"Yes."

"When are you leaving?"

"As soon as possible."

The boy sighed and sat down in a chair across Knives. There was something on his mind that was bothering him. Knives sat back and gave him time to tell him what it was. Finally, he spoke up,

"Look, I know you won't let me go with you," he stated clearly, "but at least let me help you with something. I'm sick of feeling useless."

Knives studied the boy for a moment. His proposal was genuine, but he was just a boy. Knives could see his eagerness to help, but he knew it was too dangerous.

"You're right I won't let you go. Just stay here and plan your wedding with Jessica."

Eric looked at him in surprise, "Jessica told you?"

"No, but I saw you two together yesterday and Jessica said she had a surprise for Vash. It was obvious."

"Don't tell Vash, Jessica was…"

"Mr. Knives!" Milly chirped, "I brought Mr. Vash and Sempai too… oh, hi Eric,"

"Hi, Miss Thompson. Um… well, goodbye."

He gave Knives one last look and left.

"April City, Knives?" Vash asked his brother.

"Well, it's no use sitting here," Knives replied, "and I know you've been thinking about it."

"I agree with Knives, we have to start somewhere," Meryl said.

"_We_ aren't going anywhere, it's too dangerous," Knives said sternly.

"What the hell does that mean?" Meryl cried.

"Knives is right, Meryl. It is too dangerous for you,"

Meryl glared at Vash, "Don't tell me what's too dangerous for me Vash, I can decide for myself."

"I know you can, but I don't want the two of you hurt."

"We can take care of ourselves, Mr. Typhoon, we're big girls." Meryl snapped.

"Besides, we have a job to do," Milly piped in, "We don't do our job, we don't get paid, then you'll really be stuck with us."

Vash and his brother sighed; they don't know why they bothered anymore.

"Thank you," Vash said finally.

No matter how bad the situation was, Milly and Meryl were always with him and he couldn't be more grateful.

"It's our job Vash, we have to follow you to the ends of the earth." Meryl smiled.

Vash looked at the petite woman, getting that tingling feeling in his stomach. He smiled back at her softly. _You two make me sick_ Knives groaned mentally to his brother and shook his head. Vash blushed lightly and looked away.

"Yay! April City!" Milly jumped, "I heard that they have the prettiest sunsets there and the weather is always perfect!"

"This isn't a vacation, Milly. We're going there to investigate." Meryl said, "I should probably write a letter to Bernadelli before we go."

"Yes, Ma'am!" Milly saluted and accompanied Meryl to their room.

-

"Be careful all of you and come back safe," the Doctor said shaking Vash's hand.

"We will."

Vash let go of the Doctor's hand only to have Jessica dive into his chest crying.

"I wish you didn't have to go," she choked, "but I know you do. Just be careful, okay?"

"I will Jessica, besides you still have a surprise for me remember?" Vash said, hugging her tightly.

"It'll be waiting until you get back."

Eric walked up to Knives and held out his hand,

"Good luck, Mr. Knives."

Knives took his hand firmly,

"Good luck to you too."

Eric leaned in towards Knives and whispered, "If there's anything I…"

"I'll come to you first."

Surprised at his response, Eric smiled hesitantly and let go of his hand.

"Well, good bye," Vash said getting into the black jeep, "see you soon."

Knives started the small vehicle and began to drive away. Vash waved to his family until the small specks disappeared into the horizon.

* * *

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Next Chapter: April Fools (title may change)

That was chapter five, kinda slow but could't help it. I promise the next one will be a lot more exciting, you might even meet the bad guy oo. And there will also be a lot more of Milly and Knives, I hope everyone's figured that out by now! Review PLEASE! I love to read your thoughts and suggestions! Thank you! Luv you all:)

--Pheonix--


	6. April Fools

Vash: Ahh! She's back, run!!

Pheonix: Smacks Vash over the head Shut it, blondie.

Hey there! Sorry for taking so long (long is an understatement) to update, I was so busy with school, but I promised myself that I would finish this story. I kinda would be a hypocrite if I didn't finish it, so here it is. Well here it is, people, Chapter 6. I hope you like it, I tried hard. Please read and review. Enjoy!!

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April Fools

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It was a three day trip to April City and the small jeep was already nearing the end of its second day. Millions Knives was driving, Vash the Stampede sat next to him, his thoughts elsewhere. Meryl Stryfe sat in the back with her eyes closed, but her mind wide awake; accompanied by a softly humming Milly Thompson stroking a black cat that had stowed away.

Knives' attention was on more things than the driving task at hand. Since the four of them left Seed City, he had been trying to reach the Plant in April. The closer they got, the stronger his connection was. The Plant was scared; he could feel it in every inch of his mind. Too much power was being drawn from her to keep the city running. The Plant was reaching out to him, desperately holding on. Knives growled in frustration and pushed harder on the pedal.

Vash suddenly stirred next to him. He sat up straight and looked around, his eyes narrowed.

"What?" Knives asked, taking his eyes off the road.

"Do you feel that?" Vash whispered.

Knives sighed inwardly, the only thing he could feel was the Plant's pain, but Vash was right, the air did feel unusual.

"Yes," he replied finally.

Vash looked in the mirror on his side. There was nothing but a small cloud of dust rising in the distance. He turned around and inspected it.

"Knives, stop the car."

Meryl opened her eyes at the sound of the outlaw's voice and sat up alert. Knives looked in the rear view mirror, wondering why his brother wanted him to stop. He narrowed his eyes and saw what Vash saw. Immediately he stopped.

"It's following us," Knives said, turning around.

"What is it?" asked Meryl, looking back.

"Worms. They're headed this way," Vash answered, peering at the cloud.

"Then why did we stop?"

"Because we can't out run them, they're moving too fast."

"So we're just going to sit here?"

The only answer the insurance agent received was silence. She growled in frustration and turned around.

The group sat quietly in the vehicle, watching the dust cloud get bigger and bigger. It didn't seem to pose a threat directly at them, but the scene made the brothers uneasy.

Then the cloud of dust began to fade away to nothing, but Vash and Knives could still sense the giant sand eaters.

"Where did they go?" Milly whispered.

"Underground," Knives answered, alerting all of his senses.

It was quiet now. The hot wind lifted grains of sand around them, but there was no sign of life. Knives and Vash moved for their guns.

A low rumble echoed around the jeep. Meryl caught Milly's eye, she felt it too. She looked at Vash and his brother, their eyes narrowed and their faces hard as stone. Something was definitely wrong. As fast as it had come, the rumbling vanished. Then the ground began to shake.

The cat in Milly's lap hissed as the jeep vibrated aggressively. The four of them held onto the vehicle as the ground trembled more and more violently.

"What's going on?" Meryl cried over the growl.

"They're below us," Vash yelled back.

Every alarm in Knives' head was going off, screaming in his ear. Whatever these worms were doing, they were doing out of fear. And whatever was scaring them, was making its way into his mind too. His eyes began to blur and his head thumped in pain. He heard Meryl cry something and Vash respond back, but he couldn't understand what they said. The pain flooded his mind, taking over him. Knives clutched his head tightly.

This situation was all too familiar for Vash the Stampede and as he recalled it didn't end the way he would have liked. The last time he dealt with worms, they were being controlled through a high frequency device by one of the Gun Ho Guns. But as far as Vash knew all the Gun Ho Guns were dead. And these worms didn't have a pattern in they're behavior.

Suddenly the ground ripped apart as a giant worm shot into the sky. The jeep almost capsized into the sand.

"Vash we have to move!" Meryl Stryfe yelled hold on to dear life.

"No point, they're following us. They're spooked about something and…"

"Mr. Knives!" Milly screamed.

Vash looked down at his brother. He was curled into a ball, his head in his lap and his fingers ghost white. He was rocking back and forth slowly, trembling.

"Knives!"

Millions didn't respond. Another worm burst out of the ground almost toppling the vehicle again. The Stampede's heart raced; maybe he thought wrong, may the worms were attacking them, maybe they were in danger. He needed his brother.

"Knives!" Vash yelled and this time he got through to him.

Knives slowly lifted his head and looked up. His face was paler than usual and his eyes were unfocused.

"Knives…?" Vash began.

"I'm… I'm okay…" Knives said dryly, trying to sound convincing.

"What happed, Knives?" Meryl asked.

"Do you really think this is a good time for that?" Knives spat grabbing his gun.

Meryl glared at him and grabbed her derringers, "What now? If we don't do something soon, we'll be…"

"Mr. Cat, come back!"

The cat in Milly's arms landed on the ground. Before anyone could stop her, Milly Thompson jumped out the car and ran after the black fur ball.

"Milly! Get back here!" Meryl screamed.

Meryl's cries went to deaf ears as tall girl chased the cat. Knives growled in irritation watching her put her life in danger for a cat.

"Damn woman," he cursed and jumped after her into the cage of worms.

"Knives what are you…?"

Without warning, a sand eater broke through the ground throwing the insurance agent into the air.

"MILLY!"

Meryl watched in horror as her friend fell to the ground and lay still. Meryl moved to get out of the car, but Vash caught her wrist.

"Vash, let go! I have to help her!"

Vash said nothing. Meryl struggled against unbeatable odds to free herself. Inevitable as it was, she had to try. Eventually she gave up and watched helplessly as more of the sand worms shot up form the ground.

_Knives, _Vash called out, _Knives, where are you?_ His brother didn't respond; Vash couldn't even feel his presence. His stomach lurched. The Stampede knew his brother could take care of himself, but that didn't stop him from worrying.

"Vash?"

Meryl's voice snapped the Humanoid Typhoon out of his trance. He looked at her, worry bright on her face. He had to figure out what was causing the worms to act this way. Vash closed his eyes and tried to reach the worms, hoping to find… something, anything to help him—.

It stopped. Everything around them was still and quiet. The sand eaters were frozen in their tracks. Vash got through only to find himself in a world of confusion and fear. His attempts at any contact with the worms were shot down. Defeated, he began to draw away from the worms' mind when something caught his ears. It was hazy, but it was music. He felt the outside world rumble, the giants were retreating back underground, he was going to loose his connection soon. Vash concentrated hard on the fading music, but he only heard fuzzy bits. Before long, he lost the connection completely.

Vash opened his eyes just as the dust cleared. He saw his brother on the ground on his knees hovering over a bleeding insurance agent. He looked up at him, his eyes dark,

"She's not breathing."

A day's trip to April city was cut in half. Knives' foot was pressed hard against the pedal, not even Vash dared to say anything. Milly lay in the back seat of the car; Meryl had managed to get her to breath, but she was still unconscious. Her arm was broken in several places and she was bruised all over. The cat Milly risked her life to save was nuzzled up against her neck, purring. Knives blew past the gates of the city ignoring the rude commentary of its residences. He was driving blind, he didn't know where the hospital was, but he wasn't in the mood to stop and ask for directions. Fortunately, Meryl spotted it quickly.

Meryl, Knives and Vash with Milly in his arms, rushed inside.

"Please," Meryl begged to a passing nurse, "you have to help us."

"Sorry, but there are people before you," he said hotly, throwing her a look.

Meryl stepped back astonished. She looked around and saw no one, just a small boy with a band-aid on his knee and his mother reading a book. She heard a sharp gasp and turned back to the nurse. Her eyes widened, Knives' face was centimeters form the nurses', a fist full of his shirt. His eyes were narrowed and dangerous,

"I'm sure you can make an exception for her," he growled. The hairs on the back of Meryl's neck stood on end.

The nurse nodded fiercely, his eyes wide and in shock. Meryl sighed, she was sure Milly wasn't going to be the only one who was going into the emergency room. The nurse called to for a stretcher, his voice cracking horribly. Knives shoved him violently aside and the nurse scrambled away.

Carefully controlled, Knives took Milly for Vash and placed her on the stretcher, just as the doctor came rushing towards them through a pair of swinging doors.

"What is going on?" he demanded.

Before Knives had a chance to rip his head off, Meryl answered,

"We were attacked by sand worms."

"Attacked?"

"Yes, please help her." Vash pleaded.

"Yes, of course," her placed two fingers on Milly's neck, "Her heart rate is fast, her breathing is rigid, she has several broken bones…Why wasn't she brought to my attention immediately?"

"I'm sorry sir," the young nurse said.

Knives shot the cowering man a glare.

"Don't apologize, get her inside!" the doctor yelled and followed Milly and the nurses through the swinging doors.

"Wait," Meryl called after them "sir! Is she…" But she was only talking to two flapping doors.

"She'll be okay," she heard Vash say as her eyes blurred. Meryl nodded her head slowly and wiped her eyes.

However, Vash wasn't talking to her.

-

He panicked. He saw her put her life in danger for a cat and he panicked. Millions Knives does NOT panic.

Knives excused himself, telling Vash and Meryl that he was going to look for a place for them to stay. He just couldn't say in that hospital anymore. They were there was almost two hours and no one was telling them anything. He was even considering barging into the operating room to get some answers. But, instead, he got up and left.

The events played over and over in his head, and every time he pictured her jumping into the wall of worms his stomach dropped. He cursed himself for it, and he cursed her...

She was a human. And he was a plant. That was it. That is as far as it can go. He scolded himself for get dragged into Vash's insane delusions.

But the knot in his belly only tightened.

He held her unconscious form in his arms, with the same knot and he was ready to kill to get her back.

Knives sat down on a nearby fountain and dropped his face into his hands. What the hell was this? He was supposed to be in control. Why the hell did he… did he care? She was only human!

He wanted to break something… or someone. He wanted this to go away. He actually wanted to hate humans again. He wanted…

_Knives_

Knives cleared his head, _Yes?_

_The doc said Milly's okay. She has a few broken bones in her arm and a small concussion. She's sleeping now, but she'll be awake tomorrow._

The knot in Knives' stomach grew, but he sighed softly with relief_, Good. _There was no reply from Vash for a while, then he finally said_, Do you want to see her? _Knives stayed quiet for a second then said_, No, I still have to find a place for us to stay._

_Okay, just tell me when you find one._

_I will, Vash._

Knives had found an inn for them to spend the night close to the hospital. They were going to do what they came here to do once they spoke to Milly. The short Insurance Agent was already in bed and Millions and The Typhoon took their time down at the bar. Chatter and smoke intoxicated the run-down saloon, but everyone was having a good time, everyone except them, of course.

Vash watched Knives.

Vash watched Knives nurse the same glass of whiskey for the past hour. He was thinking. He was thinking seriously. He had that face, his chess face, when he was weighing his next move. Knives only thought this hard when was either playing chess or when something was bothering him. Of course his brother would never admit it, so Vash didn't bother to ask. However, Vash could probably guess and be right.

Although the outlaw couldn't read his mind, he at least wanted to know what his brother was feeling. But Knives had blocked him off completely, making his feeling about the subject matter very clear. Vash sighed softly, he didn't have to make this so difficult.

A low growl came from Knives. Vash looked up to find him glaring angrily at the glass. Finally Vash said,

"It's okay, brother."

Knives looked at him, "What?"

"It's okay," Vash repeated softly.

"What are you talking about?" Knives spat, irritated.

Vash smiled lightly and took a sip form his drink like nothing was ever said.

Knives waited, but his brother gave no explanation for his statement. He growled frustrated, he didn't have time for this.

He threw back his head, with the glass of whiskey at his lips and slammed it down. Knives pushed back his chair and walked out the bar, leaving the trail of drooling women behind.

Vash watched him go, a small smile tugged his lips. He turned back around to his drink. It really was okay.

-

"Vash, no," she scolded.

"But…but…but…" he whimpered.

"'But' all you want, they're Milly's."

"But they're chocolate covered! With _sprinkles_!"

Ms. Stryfe, Mr. Stampede and Mr. Knives crossed the dusty streets of April and made their way into the hospital. Milly had awoken only minutes ago and Meryl wanted to surprise her with a tasty gift. However, the Humanoid was not making it easy.

"No, Vash!" Meryl spat in frustration, "You've already had ten."

"Actually, Stryfe, he had twelve," Knives corrected casually.

"Twelve! I knew it! You lied to me!"

Vash cringed at the shrill tone. He shot his brother a dirty look,

"Traitor."

Knives smiled back, sweet and sarcastic.

"Only for my pleasure, brother."

They opened the doors to a bustling waiting room. People were filling out stacks of information, mothers were trying to control their rowdy children and nurses and doctors were swinging from patient to patient. The young nurse, who had been _so_ helpful the pervious day, came running up to them, calling their name.

"Ms. Thompson is awake, and doing very well ma'am," he said steadily, making sure to avoid eye contact with Knives, "I've been told to take you to her when you arrived, ma'am."

"Well, thank you."

He bowed slightly, turned around and began to walk quickly through the swinging doors. With silent looks exchanged, the three of them followed.

Milly was laying comfortably in her bed with right her arm in a cast. White gauze was wrapped around her head and several band aids covered her face and neck. Meryl knocked lightly as they entered the room.

"Sempai! Mr. Vash! Mr. Knives!"

"Hello Milly, how are you felling?" Meryl asked, hugging her friend tightly.

"Fine, thank you. And look who I found," Milly said pointing to the other side of the bed.

Meryl peered over to find the black cat that caused all this trouble, keeping itself busy with a bowl of milk.

"I found him sleeping on my bed last night," Milly explained as the cat jumped into her arms, licking his furry lips, "The nurse wanted to throw him out, but I insisted he stay."

Knives raised an eyebrow, why the hell would she still want to keep that stupid creature? It almost got them killed!

_She's just that kind of person Knives._

Knives turned around to see Vash smiling at Milly as if he said nothing. Suddenly he lunged forward grabbing the donut box out of Meryl's hands.

"Well since you feeling better," Vash said boldly, keeping the box high above the small woman, "I guess you won't be needing these."

"Give them back you blonde moron!" Meryl yelled jumping.

She stopped and glared hotly at him, then she took the heel of her boots and landed them perfectly on his toes.

He screamed… like a little girl.

Meryl caught the box carefully as Vash crumpled to his toes.

"Next time, Mr. Stampede, listen to me," Meryl stated and turned to Milly, "Here you go Milly, thought you might like these. We tried to find some pudding for you but no one has any."

"That's okay, these are fine. Thank you," Milly said opening the box.

Forgetting the immense pain in his foot, Vash jumped to the side of the bed. His eyes glazed, his mouth watering, his hands aching to reach out and grab one.

"Would you like one Mr.Vash?" Milly asked taking a bit.

Vash gasped, "Really?"

"Milly no! Don't give him one!"

"Well, I can't eat all of these by myself Sempai."

Before Meryl could say anything else, Vash latched onto Milly,

"Oh, thank you, thank you! You are an angel descended form Heaven!" he then looked at Meryl, "You, on the other hand…"

Meryl growled.

"Sorry."

After their goodbyes, the trio split up to find information. Meryl set out to find the city mayor and the brother's went to find the remaining plant.

Meryl didn't have such a hard time finding the mayor since the only mansion in all of April was owned by him. As she approached the mansion gates, two meaty guards stepped in her way. One was tall, well tanned, with eyes like peas and the other had a beard and a O-S-E-R tattooed on his forehead. Merytl eyed the tattoo holding back a smile.

"State your business," the one with the missing L growled.

Meryl bit her lip, "I'm Meryl Stryfe of the Bernadelli Insurance Agency and I'm here to discuss the recent tragedies that have taken place."

"Do you have an appointment?"

"Well, no… but…"

"Then you ain't seein' the Mayor."

Meryl steamed, "Excuse me, but this is very important! And by not letting me through, you are in direct violation of rule 625 of the Bernadelli Code which states--"

"Look, lady, we don't care what we are in violation of, if you don't got an appointment, you ain't seein' the Mayor."

Meryl ran her hand through her hair, he was starting to give her a headache,

"Look, Sir, I don't have time--"

"Let her in."

Meryl turned around at the sound of the voice. It was a young man, maybe twenty years old. His hair was dark just like his suit. He stood tall, with his hands jammed in his pockets. He reminded Meryl a little bit of someone she had once knew.

"Arian," the pea eyed one began.

"Let her in, if she wants to see the Mayor, she can. I doubt he's doing anything worthwhile anyway."

The two men looked at each other for a moment before opening the metal gates. Meryl raised her eyebrows in surprise.

"Uh, thank you."

Hesitantly, she walked in. The young man followed, Meryl peered at him.

"I also have business with the Mayor," he said bluntly.

Meryl stared at him then turned away, this was going to be an interesting day.

The Plant was calling for them since before they arrived at the city, and finally they could answer her. The power plant in which she was held was almost deserted; nobody wanted to be near in case it blows up as well, so getting to her was not a problem.

She was waiting for them. Her hands pressed up against the glass, her wings drooping and her eyes tired but eager.

"Hi, there," Vash said softly, placing his hand on the glass against hers'.

The plant glowed lightly, Vash smiled.

"Do you know who killed your sister?"

The plant looked into his eyes. Then slowly she turned to Knives. He pressed his hand against the glass absentmindedly. He closed his eyes, Vash waited.

The plant opened up her mind to allow Knives to search any corner he needed to. However, this wasn't as easy as Knives had hoped. There was so much he had to dig through, fear, anger, confusion, exhaustion and above all pain, pain of loosing the other plant. But he kept going, pushing further, that was when he heard it; the faint sound, the music, the same music that he heard during the attack. His head began to throb, he could feel himself grow warm, but he refused to let go, he had to find out what was causing this. He dug deeper, to catch the music, to memorize it but the pain was getting stronger. Suddenly the plant began pulling away. Then a voice echoed, almost angelically, _I'm coming for you my pets, I'm coming for you_. _Knives, Knives__**, Knives**_.

"KNIVES!"

Knives opened his eyes, trembling. He was on his knees, sweating and out of breath.

"Knives?"

The older plant looked up wide eyed at his brother, then at the plant. She was at the other side of the bulb, curled up into a ball, looking at him.

"What happened?" Vash demanded.

"Let's go,"

"What? No, Knives. We have to find out what happened."

"She's not going to be able to help us now," Knives said walking away, "I wouldn't either if I were her," he muttered.

Vash looked at the plant. He tried to reach her, but she completely blocked him out. He sighed and followed his brother.

Meryl and Arian were ushered into a finely decorated room. The walls were trimmed with gold and furniture adorned with silks. It was a life full of luxury unlike the city outside these walls.

"The Mayor will be with you shortly," said a man with his nose pointed to the ceiling and dressed cleanly in black and white, "would you like anything to drink while you wait?"

"Water, thank you." Meryl said taking a seat.

"And the usual for you, master Adrian?"

"No thank you, I won't be staying long."

The butler gave a small, impassive nod and left the room. Within a few minutes he returned with an elegant glass of water resting on a silver tray. He offered the tray to Meryl.

"Thank you," Meryl said, taking the glass.

Just then a man entered the room. He was tall, well built and he had an air of power to him. He walked up to Meryl and held out his hand,

"Ms. Stryfe, I presume?" he said shaking Meryl's hand.

"Hello."

"And Arian," he said grimly.

"Hello," replied back just as grimly, "father."

Meryl was taken aback, _father_?

The Mayor cleared his throat loudly.

"Sorry," Arian said through clenched teeth, "Hello, Mr. Mayor."

"Better. Now, I believe Ms. Stryfe and I have some important things to discuss, I'll talk with you later. Wait in the library for me."

Arian glared openly at the man, "Yes, sir," he spat and left the room.

Meryl watched him go, now it made sense, why the guards let her in, why the butler called him master. She also understood why he seemed so cold she was standing right next to the source

"So shall we get down to business, then?" the Mayor asked taking a seat.

"Uh, yes, of course."

-

It was already dark in the city of October; he stars were outshined by the twin moons in the sky, but not a soul bared go outside. The city seemed deserted and the silence was so loud it was deafening.

However one man was standing at the plant bulb, his face covered in the shadow of his hood, staring at the plant, a cruel smile on his face. The plant was mesmerized. She hovered lightly, in a trance and glowed faintly.

"You'll sing for me, won't you?" he whispered softly.

The plant glowed brighter and pressed her hands against the glass.

"Of course, you will," he said caressing the glass where her face was.

Then the man took something form his pocket, a card, the Jack of Hearts, and placed it on the ground. He looked at the plant once more and kissed the glass.

"Sing, my angel,"

And as he left the city, the plant did just that.

* * *

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Next Chapter: Jacks

Well that was chapter 6. I told you you'd meet a bad guy. More about him in the next chapter. And I promise I'll get back to the actual plot! I hoped you like this chapter! Please read and review! I'd love to hear what you think!

Pheonix


	7. Jacks

Haha...umm... yeah... So I know I have no excuses, but hey at least I'm still writing Anyhoo, nothing much to say, here is the new chapter. Sorry for any spelling or grammatical errors.

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Jack

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Meryl Stryfe of the Bernadelli Insurance Agency walked into a foul smelling saloon. It was littered with half drunken men and short skirted women. Why Vash and Knives insisted they meet here, she'll never understand, then again the skirts were the shortest here. She rolled her eyes and looked around, past the smoke and the crowd. She spotted the twins in the far corner, each with a drink in front of them.

She walked up to the tabled and pulled up an empty chair.

"Hey, Insurance Girl, how'd it go?"

Meryl grumbled and buried her face in her hands, "That man is utterly incompetent! I have no idea how he ever became a mayor."

She grabbed Vash's glass from him and gulped it down. The Typhoon's mouth drooped as he watched her clean out his glass. The raven haired women wouldn't touched a glass unless Milly forced her to, and even then she would only take a sip or two, so watching her down an entire glass was one in a lifetime chance.

"I swear!" she said, swallowing the hard drink, "No wonder his son hates him."

"Son?" Knives asked.

"I met him just before seeing the mayor. Anyway, I got nothing out of the insolent, how about you?"

Vash shook his head slightly before answering, "Not much, just what Knives found."

Meryl turned to Knives, waiting for the brother to begin. She prayed that what he was going to say was at least of some significance.

"It's some kind of music," Knives stated.

"What?"

"Music, it's doing something to the plants from the inside out."

Slowly he took a sip, still trying to shake off the feeling in his stomach.

"I heard," he continued, "the same sound when the worms attached."

The insurance agent stared at the plants, her mouth slightly agape and a less than disbelieving look on her face.

"You're joking right? Music?" she asked, laughing blankly.

"Well, so far that's all we could come up with," Vash confessed.

The three sat in silence, listening to the noises of the bar.

"I heard it too," Vash said suddenly, "But, why wasn't I affected?"

Knives thought for a moment, taking another small sip, "Maybe because your plant abilities aren't as developed as mine."

"Makes sense," Meryl said, leaning into her palm, "But who's causing it?"

Knives sighed inaudibly and answered her question, "I wasn't able to find that out."

Meryl thought about mentioning the Jack of Hearts, but bit back her words. Vash had a strong connection to him and it was probably best not to blame him for anything without finding out exactly who he was.

Meryl breathed out heavily, "So we got somewhere today, right?"

The twins stayed quiet. Meryl nodded her head and excused herself to go see Milly. She wasn't happy with the information gathered so far, but she knew that whoever was causing all of this wasn't going to make it easy for them.

Vash and Knives remained at the saloon, promising to visit Milly before the end of the day, they had a bit more work to do. Well, it was Vash who actually promised, Knives just grunted and rolled his eyes.

---

Meryl made her way to Milly's room, distancing herself from her environment as much as possible. She was never the one for hospitals. Just the thought of needles turned her stomach. It was a fear from her childhood that she didn't wish to revisit, but because of that one time, she learned at a very young age to take care of herself.

However, she wasn't taking care of where she was heading. Suddenly, hot, steaming liquid flew into the air and splashed onto the person she ran into.

"Oh, I am so sorry, I wasn't look…," Meryl trailed off. The man desperately trying to dry off the burning shirt was none other than Arian.

"Arian," Meryl said, surprised.

Arian looked up at the sound of his name. He smiled,

"Ms. Stryfe, we meet again."

"Uh, yeah."

Meryl was dumfounded, this man looked and sounded like the mayor's son but he didn't act like him. He was happier than the one she met at the mansion. If she didn't know any better, she'd swear that she was looking at his twin.

"Are you alright, Ms. Stryfe?" Arian asked.

Meryl blinked, she realized she'd been staring, "Uh, yes. Sorry about the coffee, I wasn't looking where I was going."

Arian smiled again, "Don't worry about it. We are in a place where people go when they get hurt."

Meryl smiled, "Ironic, huh?"

"Yeah. Um, mind if I ask why you're here?"

"My friend was hurt badly on the way to the city, so she's here. I thought I'd come visit her. She hates being alone in hospitals for too long."

Adrian nodded, "I can relate to her, hospitals and I aren't the best of friends. But, my sister broke her leg when the plant was destroyed, and she wanted me to come see her, so here I am!"

Meryl smiled again, a little forced this time. She couldn't believe that a man capable of being this cheerful could show so much distaste.

"Well, I don't want to keep your friend waiting, so I'll—"

"Sempai!" a cherry voice called.

Meryl looked up to find Milly running towards her. Her head was still wrapped in gauze and her arm was still in a sling, the band-aids had come off, but that didn't change the fact that she was running when she could barely walk.

"Milly! Don't run! You're going to get hurt!" Meryl yelled as she watched her friend ran awkwardly towards her.

"I'm fine, Sempai. And guess what? They said I could-ahhh…!"

Just as Meryl feared, Milly lost her footing. She lunged toward her friend, but Arian beat her to it.

"Oh," Milly looked up at the man who had caught her, "thank you."

Arian nodded, his eyes locked on Milly.

"Um, I'm okay now, you can let me go," Milly said, trying to sound as grateful as possible.

Arian backed off immediately, blushing slightly. He turned to Meryl,

"It was nice seeing you again, Ms. Stryfe," he said. Then he turned to Milly, blushing against his will, "It was nice meeting you, Ms…?"

"Milly Thompson," she smiled.

"Ms. Thompson. Good bye."

And with a quick bow, the mayor's son left, leaving a waving Milly and a confused Meryl behind.

-

Vash and Knives headed to the other side if the town in search of more clues. Yes, he had to admit that they needed more sources of information other than the Plants, but tracking the residents of a dead renegade was not one of Knives' favorite things to do.

Knives remembered the Jack of Hearts. Although, his distaste for humans ran equally, this rebel peaked his interests. He heard of the Jack of Hearts just around the time he was looking for the nine Gun-Ho-Guns. Jack had no special abilities that much impressed Knives, granted he was far better than most humans with a colt, but something else about this young man intrigued Millions.

He was against caging the Plants. Although he was known widely for his infamous thievery, Knives was more interested in his beliefs of Plants. The Jack staged many protests about releasing the Plants. He made public threats of what would happen if the town didn't let the Plants go. Knives knew that this young man was a radical, he would do anything to get what he wanted, and Knives knew exactly how to use that to his advantage. The Jack of Hearts was to be the first Gun-Ho-Gun, but Jack had other plans.

Knives sent Legato to recruit the Jack, and to his surprise his voluntary slave came back empty handed. Legato had a sick way of manipulating people, but he always got the results that his master was pleased with. However, this human proved to be difficult, more difficult than most of his kind. Only one other person had resisted Knives' call and that person was his brother. Any attempt at contacting the Jack after that failed, and that was not acceptable by Millions. Humans were foolish parasites; they were inferior to him and his kin, but this one was resisting, just like his brother. And what was more infuriating is that Knives knew nothing about Jack other than his name and his deeds. He never showed his face, even when he was in public. But one day the Jack of Hearts disappeared, simply vanished. Nothing of significance happened that day, but the radical was gone. Knives was disappointed, he wanted to smite the little spider, but if he was gone that was just as well, he only hoped he met a slow and torturous death.

Unfortunately Knives' brother knew how the legend of the Jack of Hearts ended and he was the cause of it.

"Well, here we are," Knives heard Vash say.

Knives looked around. They were on the outskirts of the city, where another town once was. On both sides of the street, the buildings stood tall. The windows of the buildings creaked in the wind, and the eerie shadows in the houses completed the ghost town.

Knives peaked into one of the swinging windows. It was a house, once occupied by wealthy people. The ceiling of the house was decorated with elegant lamps, covered in cob-weds, the tables and chairs and sofas were covered with dust and crawling insects. The pictures of the family that once lived here still watched the rooms. The now rusty silverware still adorned the wood cabinets. It was as if the family just got up and left in a hurry.

"Where exactly is here?" Knives asked dusting his hands.

"This is where The Jack of Hearts lived."

"Here?"

Vash nodded. He spotted the building he came here to investigate.

"That was the saloon his family ran," Vash said walking towards it.

Knives furrowed his eyebrows. So his brother knew who the Jack really was, but why were they here? Vash seemed pretty sure that the Jack he knew was dead, then why look into his past? Knives decided to keep his mouth shut, as irritating as it was. He had his way of getting answers and Vash had his. Knives only hoped that they would get to the bottom of this before another plant lost its life.

As they entered the run-down building, both the brothers felt uneasy and immediately they reached for their guns. The building was dark, and the smell of gun powder and alcohol still reeked in the walls. But the Plants felt a faint presence. Vash motioned to Knives and his brother nodded. Carefully, they searched the saloon. The building was more like a house than a bar; there were many corners where a person could hide and there were many more corners to attack form. As quiet as they tried to be, the bar gave away their positions. Every time either one of them creaked; Knives swore under his breath, this was getting frustrating.

Then they heard a noise, scuffling, from above, and the presence grew stronger. Quickly the Plants dashed to the stairs. Whoever was with them was actually trying to block the Plants' senses and they were either slipping or they were luring the twins in. _It's a trap_, Knives said as-a-matter-of-factly, taking lead. _Maybe not_, Vash replied back, not meaning a word of it. Knives smirked and walked slowly up the stairs. Vash followed suit. The second floor to the building was like a balcony leading to all the rooms. Knives scanned the floor before taking another step. Suddenly, a door clicked shut. He snapped his head around in the direction of the sound. It was a room in the far corner. Quickly, he and Vash ran to the door. Without warning they burst through the doors, aiming their guns.

-

"They said you could go home tomorrow? Wow, that was fast."

Meryl and Milly walked back to the hospital room, Milly slightly leaning on Meryl.

"Yup, they told me that I could leave, but to make sure I take lots of rest."

"I'm not sure how easy that would be with what we have to do," Meryl sighed.

Milly smiled, "I'll be fine, Sempai, don't worry."

The raven haired agent smiled back.

"Why were you out of your room anyway?"

Milly blushed and rubbed the back of her neck,

"Ah, well, you see… Mr. Cat ran away and I was looking for him," she said, laughing nervously.

"You let a cat loose in a hospital?" Meryl cried, "You're not even supposed to have any animals in the hospital."

-

A small window was open on the other side of the room, the light blocked by a dark silhouette. The shape was tall covered in heavy clothing, but it definitely was a man. He moved slightly, shifting his weight. Vash and Knives pointed their guns, fingers on the triggers. Neither of the brothers said anything, they waited for the intruder to speak. The head of the silhouette shook slightly, almost disappointedly. He clicked his tongue and sighed.

"I thought I was better," he said casually, "You caught me way too early in the game. Guess I underestimated you boys."

The _boys_ stood still, waiting for the man to go on. They both knew they could take him out, but that seemed a little too easy. If he was the man they were looking for, he wouldn't come here unarmed, at least not without a catch.

"That's right," he beamed, turning around, "there is catch, but it's much too soon for you to know."

_What? How did he…?_ Vash thought in surprise. However he kept his face clear of all emotion. Needless to say, Knives did the same, but he was a step ahead of Vash. Immediately he raised the barriers around his mind, only allowing Vash's thoughts through. Anyone else trying to force their way through would be in for a hell of a lot of pain.

"Ah," the man continued, "such hostility Knives."

Knives' stomach cringed, his name on his lips made him sick. He knew who they were, he knew what they could do and he most likely knew what they were capable of.

"Who are you?" Knives growled dangerously.

"Ah-ah-ah, patience is a virtue, son," the silhouette replied, "I thought you would've known that after waiting for Vash for so long. But then again, you did loose in the end, didn't you?"

Knives' eyes narrowed. He wanted to pull the trigger; send a bullet straight through his skull. He wanted to rip the damn bastard in half. _Take it easy, Knives_, he heard Vash say, _Let him give us as much information as possible before taking drastic measures. _Knives glared at the figure_, I know, Vash_.

"But, for such ill behavior, manners must be taught."

Vash and Knives tightened their grip; that did not sound good.

That was when they heard it, a sound… music. It was the one Knives heard, but this time it was different. Mesmerizing… yes… no. It was beautiful. Vash felt his body go numb, his eyes lost focus, but he didn't care… no, he did care. The sound was intoxicating and yet so excruciating. Vash shook his head; it was as if one side of his brain was arguing with the other. He dropped his hand to his side encircled by the music. He wanted to pull the trigger, but he could barely feel his arm. The Typhoon forced his head up. His eyes were going in and out of focus, but he could see the silhouette walking towards them. As much as he wanted to defend himself and his brother, his body gave out. The Stampede fell to the floor and his brother next to him. Vash tried to see Knives, it was almost impossible, but he knew Knives was feeling the same way he was. The man came closer and Vash began to grow warm. Then immediately a chill ran through him. And again warmth. Stampede clutched his head, it started to ache… it was unbearable. Suddenly, the chill was gone, but his temperature continued to increase. He shook his head violently. He felt out of place, wrong. Vash griped his hair tightly in hopes to make it stop, but the harder he resisted the worse he got.

Knives grabbed the back of his neck, biting back a scream. His mind was chaos… too many thoughts, too much confusion… too hot. He hunched over his knees so his head touched the hard wood floor and he pressed; he pressed his head with all his weight into the wood. Sweat was dripping off his burning skin; he wanted to peel it off. Tears stung his eyes, literally. He dug his nails into the back of his neck. It wasn't working, his condition was getting worse. Then he felt a hand in his hair, brushing it gently. The hand moved down to his chin, caressing his blazing face. His head was lifted up. It was the intruder. Knives' eyes were too blurred and unfocused to see his face, but the man's eyes glowed bright blue. The anger, the disgust, the urge to rip him limb from limb the normal Knives would've felt was gone. All Knives hoped for now is that the man would stop this. Millions Knives was ready to beg, ready to do all his bidding, serve him like Legato did... anything to make it stop.

"Do you want me to stop?" the man asked as if he were speaking to a child.

Knives and Vash attempted a nod.

"Well, you know, you could stop it yourselves."

The man picked up the silver colt and eyed it carefully.

"Its beautiful craftsmanship Knives," he said admiringly, "now you can put it to good work."

He looked back the two agonized Plants, a smirk playing on his lips. Vash screamed, his nails drawing blood through his shirt. The man sighed,

"But that's would be an easy way out," he continued, standing up, "I'm afraid you'll have to suffer a lot more before it comes to that." He stepped over the curled up bodies, "And now I must bid you farewell, my pets, it's time for me to go. You won't be following me tonight, will you?"

With that he was gone, taking the music and their consciousness.

-

Next Chapter: ...

That was chapter 7. Please tell me what you think. Not sure what the next chater is going to be called, yet but there will be one!!!


	8. Of Angels and Daemons

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Ah-ha! I'm back... run!! Sorry about not updating in forever! I have been quite busy with owrk and classes, but I used my two week vacation to write this It's kind of slow, it's just the it went, but I think you might like it... Actually I hope you do . Well, enjoy!

* * *

Of Angels and Daemons

--

The gunshot that Vash and the boy heard came from a distance. Instinctively they both ran towards it. A crowd of people had gathered by a dry fountain, all whispering. From the center of the circle, he could hear a girl crying. As Vash got closer, the side of the crowd began to part. Three men came through, a man in a red jacket, dark hair and an emotionless face, the ring leader and the other two his dogs. In the man's hand was a pistol. Vash stood still as the man walked in his direction. From beneath the shadow of his hair, he looked at the Typhoon and smirked.

"Nice jacket," he said.

Vash was sick to his stomach. He looked through the gap in the crowd. On the ground was a woman in her mid twenties, holding a man no older than herself, in her arms. Blood covered her dress and skin. She held him tightly, hoping that if she held on tight enough, that he would come back.

"Why?" Vash asked, quietly.

The man looked back casually and turned up the corner of his lips,

"He was late on his rent."

"He was getting married."

The man looked back again, this time with a frown, "No reason to be late on his rent, he was already two months late."

With that, he left with his obedient puppies close behind him. Vash watched him leave, how cruel did a childhood have to be, for someone to grow up to be him? Vash heard a sharp curse next to him. The boy took off towards the crowd, calling the girl's name.

The 60 Billion Double Dollar had nothing to say. He walked to the crowd and offered as much help as he could.

That night Vash lay awake in his bed. The tavern boy's uncle had let him stay there that night for free. Vash couldn't get that girl out of his head. There was a funeral set for her fiancé and almost everyone in town had gone. Vash came to learn that the man in the red coat called himself Morningstar, a fitting name in Vash's opinion. He had been terrorizing the town for months, but this was the first time he had taken a life. Vash closed his eyes, recalling Rem's voice. It was soothing, like always.

Suddenly, outside the door, Vash heard footsteps. They were quick and light. The humanoid slipped out of bed and went to the door. Carefully he opened it, something wasn't right. From the tiny slit in the door, Vash made out a figure covered in robes, hurrying away down the stairs. Quickly, the spiky blonde moused his way out of his room, allowing his instincts to lead him.

He followed the figure to a beautiful white mansion, heavily guarded. The figure ducked behind the shadow of a boulder. Vash did the same, keeping his distance. The man in the robe poked his head out and looked to the mansion. He seemed to be studying them, like a thief trying to find the best way to break into a house. Then the figure stood up, a in his hand. Just like the breeze, the figure blended in with the dessert darkness making his way to the mansion gates. Moonlight bounced off Vash's colt, it was aimed towards the figure. No one else was going to die today.

From afar, the robes slipped through the gates. Vash blinked, how did they not see him? He was right in front of them… Immediately, he saw the guards fall, one-by-one. Vash cursed himself and ran towards them. He examined the gates as he got closer; they were wider than they looked. But the men still should've seen him. He heard a low moan. Vash squeezed his way into the grounds. There were two guards on the floor, but they weren't dead. Vash smiled, they were shot at the exact place where Vash would've shot someone. On the shoulder or the thigh, he didn't kill them. Vash heard more shots emerge from the house. Quickly he made his way in and towards the noise.

The mansion was more magnificent on the inside than it was on the outside. The floors reflected the ceiling like mirrors and the walls were decorated with delicate paper. A trail of bodies littered the floor and leading Vash to the mysterious figure. He was careful, there would be more of them soon enough. That was when he heard it, shouting coming from the end of the hallway. Stampede ran to the tall double doors and cracked it open.

Vash peered through the crack, but kept some his attention behind him, for when more thugs decided to show up. The robed man was standing in the middle of the room pointing his gun. At the other end of the weapon was the man that was in the red coat in his bed cover only by his silk sheets. Next to him was a girl, blonde, beautiful and her eyes full of fear.

"Who are you?" the man demanded, pulling the sheets higher.

"I'm the one who's going to kill you."

Vash recognized that voice; it was the boy form the saloon.

The man in the bed laughed, "Many have tried, and obviously none have succeeded."

The figure moved his hand to his robes and took something out, a card. He threw it at the man. He picked it up and stared at it then looked up.

"The Jack of Hearts?" he said.

Vash knitted his eyebrows, Jack of Hearts? The boy was the Jack? He was a thief, the infamous outlaw? He was said to be as big as the Humanoid Typhoon himself. He was only a teenager? And from what Vash has heard of him, he action compare to his own, the Jack has never killed anyone.

"You're a thief, you don't kill anyone," the man said, not the least bit concerned that there was a gun trained to his head.

"I never had a reason to, Mr. Chervil," Jack spat.

Chervil, Vash thought, searching his memory. He's heard that name before. Thomas Chervil, he was a tradesman, very well respected. Of course he was only respected by the higher authorities.

"You won't kill me," Chervil said casually.

He moved to get up. Jack pulled the trigger; Vash's heart skipped a beat.

-

Meryl stepped out of the hospital into the warm night air. She took a deep breath and let it out forcefully. When will Milly learn? She had the spent the last few hours looking for the pesky black cat. She insisted that she take the cat when it was found, but Milly was a persistent girl. Why does she need to be so insistent and sweet? Stryfe let out another frustrated sigh… what was she going to do with that girl?

A laugh from a nearby bar brought Meryl out of her thoughts. Vash and Knives should be back by now, she said to herself, and more than likely Vash is already drunk… she stopped. She spotted a figure walking in her direction, no stumbling with another figure hanging heavily off his shoulder. Instinctively, Meryl ran towards the shadow to help. As she got closer the face of the walking figure came into the moon light,

"Knives!"

Meryl ran over to him, her eyes fixed on Vash's limp body.

"What happened?" she gasped, clutching onto the other of the unconscious brother.

"No time" he choked.

Meryl didn't ask any more questions. She helped Knives walk the last few long steps to the hospital.

"Someone, help!" she yelled.

Just as the nurses came running, she felt all of Vash's weight fall onto her. Meryl looked over, her petite size barely able to support the Typhoon, Knives lay on the cold floor, his breathing rugged. The nurses pulled the fallen brother into a stretcher and pulled Meryl away from Vash. They kept telling her that they were going to be alright, but all their assurance fell onto deaf ears. Meryl just stared at the two brothers wheeling away behind the swinging doors. She signed, they will never get a chance to breath, will they? She slumped down into a chair and waited.

-

Vash took a deep breath. It's been a while since he's been here. The sky was blue and air was fresh and clean. He took another deep breath and leaned back into the soft blades of grass.

"It's been a while, Vash," she said softly.

Vash smiled and nodded his head, "Yes it has."

She smiled back, her long raven hair blowing in the wind.

"How have you been?"

"Happy."

Rem Saverem looked at him with soft eyes, "Then, why are you here?"

Vash sighed and closed his eyes.

"They're being killed, Rem," he said quietly.

Rem nodded her head and looked up at the sky with knowing eyes.

_I have to stop him_, she heard Vash think, _But how? Every step we take, he's always two steps ahead._

_You know who it is then?_

_Sort of…_

_What do you mean?_

_He lead us into a trap, but we never saw his face… It hurt too much_.

Rem looked over at Vash, "Is Knives, okay?"

"Knives?" Vash said casually, taking a deep breath. His eyes shot open, _Knives!_

-

A sharp pain shot up the side of his arm, forcing him to let out an involuntary yelp. He wedged his eyes open against the light, it might've been dim, but it still gave him a migraine from hell. He looked around, scouting each section of the room. It was a hospital room, he was getting used to these. His eyes moved down to his arm; there were tubes sticking out of it and he was hooked up to a machine beeping to the beat of his heart. He lay back down and gathered his racing mind. He tried to recall everything he remembered before he lost his consciousness; the music, the silhouette, those blue eyes…

Who was he? He seemed to know a lot about them. However, it was like they caught him by surprise. But that didn't make any sense. If he was the cause of all this, he was careless in getting caught so easily… Maybe he was slipping up. But that didn't make any sense either…

"Mr. Knives!"

Millions looked up. Milly Thompson was standing in the doorway a tray of food balanced in one hand and a mile long smile on her face.

"Oh, Mr. Knives, I'm so glad you're awake!" she said, walking in.

"How long have I been here?" Knives asked, his voice raw.

"Five days," the large girl said, carefully setting the tray down on a table, "I left to check up on Mr. Vash and Sempai, and wouldn't you know it he woke up just as I walked in. So after I said hello to him, I rushed over here. But you were still asleep, so I went over to the cafeteria, because I was a little hungry, and I came right back."

Milly took a seat by his bed and smiled, waiting for him to speak.

Knives stared at her. There it was again, that feeling at the pit of his stomach. She didn't say anything of significance. Hell, that little speech would've annoyed Knives had it come from anyone else, but from her it was almost endearing. Why did she do this to him? How did she do this to him? Just by looking at her, and she didn't ever look that attractive. Her hair was pulled roughly back, her arm was in a cast and sling and she looked like she hadn't slept in days.

"How long has it been since you slept?"

Milly laughed dryly, "Um, I don't remember actually. I wanted to make sure that when you woke up that someone would be here and since Sempai was with Mr. Vash, I thought I should be here…"

"You were here all this time?" Knives asked.

Milly nodded with a shy smile.

Knives just looked at her, his lips fighting back a smile. For the first time, Knives was at a loss. He didn't know what to think, or what to say. To make matters worse, the tingle inside only got bigger. Knives wanted to do something. He'd never felt like this before. The control that he had built up when it came to her was slipping away fast and right now, Knives didn't know how to get it back. He had the urged to throw his arms around her and hug her tightly and he wanted to ki… NO. Knives stopped, no. Knives looked away forcing himself to regain his control. He was getting sucked into Vash's ideals again. He looked away from Milly and grunted a flat thank you.

Milly smiled sweetly and picked up a cup of fruit from her tray and held it out to Knives, "You're welcome. I'm sure you're hungry."

With his face still blank, Knives turned back to her. He stared down at the cup, he was a little hungry. Careful not to agitate his arm too much, Knives reach out, that was when it happened.

It was like a shock ran through him. He jumped back and Milly let out a small squeal dropping the fruit.

"Oh, I'm so sorry Mr. Knives!" she stammered.

Immediately she kneeled down to gather the fallen food. Knives didn't say anything. He brought his arm close to his face, it was shaking. It was aching too and felt weaker. His brows furrowed,

"Thompson, how do you feel?"

Milly looked up in surprise.

"What do you mean, Mr. Knives?"

"How do you feel? Do you feel different?"

"Well, no, I feel fine. Really good actually, thank you for asking," she said, a little unsure if that was the answer he was looking for.

"Are you sure you don't feel different? Think."

Milly was confused, but she did as she was told, she thought about it. He was right she did feel different, her broken arm felt different.

"My, that's strange; my arm doesn't hurt that much anymore."

Knives nodded his head and looked back at her.

"Come here," Knives ordered.

Milly Thompson came forward and Knives raised his arm to her bandaged forehead. Even before he touched her forehead, Knives could feel that shock again and he knew Milly did too. She started to pull away, but he told her to stay still. As uncomfortable as the feeling was, she stood in place. In the depths of his chest, the plant felt a growing warmth. It was a strange sensation. His heart began to race just as the muscles in his hand tightened. Suddenly Knives felt his forehead throb. His skin began to split open, drawing blood. He closed his eyes, he didn't expect this. He heard Milly gasp.

"Don't move."

"But, Mr. Knives…"

Knives moved his hand away. It was over. As quickly as it had come, the shock was gone. A drop of blood tickled down the side of his face. His breathing was rocky, his heart was racing and his arm began to cramp. Despite all of that, Knives stretched out and pulled off the white gauze. The wound had disappeared completely, just as Knives has suspected. What he didn't anticipate was that the injury would transfer to him.

This experience was certainly new. His healing abilities were nothing out of the ordinary, but healing outside his own body. Knives never even thought of this possibility, not that he ever had to in his life time. He's never had a reason to heal anyone other than himself, he never cared to try. However, Vash didn't have this ability either… His younger brother cared more for others than he did, but he couldn't heal outside his body.

A soft cloth pressed against Knives' head. He had completely dismissed the fact that Thompson was still there. He shot her a grunted look, trying to ignore the extreme worry in her eyes.

"I'm fine," he said, attempting to move away.

"No," the insurance agent said sternly.

Knives looked at her in surprise. As sweet as her voice was, that was a command, and she commanded him to sit still. And to his own astonishment, he did just that.

"I don't know how you did that Mr. Knives, but you shouldn't have. Now you're hurt even more."

"I heal quickly, Thompson. And to that point, give me your hand," Knives stated, reaching for her casted arm.

Milly moved away,

"No," she said, "Just because you figured out how to do something new, doesn't mean you can. I won't let you hurt yourself."

Knives growled in frustration, why was she being difficult?

"That injury will take months for your body to heal, while mine will take only days. If we are all healthy, we can do what we came here to do faster."

Milly looked at him silently, then slowly she said,

"I won't let you hurt yourself."

Knives pushed the pit of his stomach aside,

"Milly, listen to…"

The door to the swung open,

"…don't worry, I'm sure this room is just as comfortable as the last one."

"Yes, but you…" the voice stopped.

In the doorway was a man, tall with dark hair and he was pushing a girl in a wheelchair, followed by a short woman in blue clothing. The man looked at Knives, frowning. However once he laid his eyes on Milly he smiled brightly.

"Oh, Milly, hello, nice to see you again," he said, a little too cheerfully for Knives' taste.

He pushed the girl inside and over to the empty bed in the room. Her leg was in a cast and she looked quite a lot like the man.

"Hello, Arian, nice to see you too," Milly said kindly.

The dark haired man looked over to Knives again, "I hope I didn't interrupt anything…"

Milly smiled her sugary smile and walked over to him, completely ignoring the question.

"You must be Mika," she said, "How do you do?"

The girl turned towards Milly, but her eyes looked past her. She smiled,

"Very well, thank you."

She was blind.

"And you must be Knives?" the man asked walking over to the bed with his arm extended, "Milly's told me a lot about you."

_Milly?_ Knives daggered at his hand, then at him, how dare he…

Knives didn't like him, and he made no intention of hiding it. Who was he and how did he know Milly? The man took his hand away awkwardly and walked back over to the girl.

Slowly, he, Milly and the nurse helped the girl into the bed. He explained how the room the girl, his sister, was staying in needed to be used for someone else. Although they had paid for a private room, the hospital moved her.

"But Mika doesn't mind. I think she could use the company," he said, sending the nurse away, "And isn't it ironic that we get this room?"

He and Milly laughed. Knives, however, didn't think it was so funny. He wasn't very fond of irony.

"I think Mr. Knives could use the company too, now that he's awake," Milly said.

"Well let's let these two get acquainted. Would you like to get something to eat?" the man asked.

"Sure," Milly answered, smiling, "I'll see you later, Mr. Knives."

And with that she was gone, leaving her tray of food, the fruit and his split forehead, all to be taken care of by someone else.

-

Vash heard his brother call to him. He sounded upset, but when asked he denied anything was bothering him. The Typhoon knew better than to push him, his brother would tell him when he thought it was necessary. Knives told him about the incident with Milly. Needless to say, Vash was surprised. He knew his brother's abilities far exceeded his own, but this was something he certainly did not expect.

_We both know that this happened because of that man in the house, Knives stated, as a matter of fact._

_Yes, but why? He wants us dead._

_We don't know that for sure._

Knives was right, they didn't know that for a fact. All they knew is that he was after them. Still, what was the reason for this new ability?

Just then he heard Meryl hiss and curse under her breath. She whipped around, with her finger to her lips and began rummaging through the room. Vash looked over to where she was sitting. A broken glass rested on the table in a puddle of water. He raised his eyebrow, no time to experiment like the present time. He let his older brother know of his intentions. Knives huffed,

Don't tell her what you're doing. I'm sure she won't be happy. Vash smiled.

"Let me see, Meryl."

"I can take care of it myself, thanks," she snapped.

"Please?" he asked.

Meryl dropped her shoulders and sighed. Vash bit back a smirk, she couldn't resist that voice. With an angry face, the insurance agent made her way to the blonde.

"It's nothing big, Vash."

The Stampede didn't say anything. Meryl held up her hand. It wasn't bleeding much, but he could see indefinitely where the cut was. He reached his hand to hers and sense of electrocution over took their hands. Meryl caught her breath. The cut on her finger began to close as the skin on Vash's hand split open, he was out of breath. Then it was gone. Meryl snapped her hand away, astonished.

"How did you do that?" she demanded.

"I don't know," Vash said catching some air. He examined his finger, "There was a piece of glass stuck in your finger."

Meryl nodded, looking at her own hand.

"Vash… I don't understand."

"It seems that we have been given the ability to heal."

Meryl stared at him, "Given?"

Vash nodded, "We think that the man in the house did something to us."

"We?"

"Me and Knives."

Stryfe stayed quiet, assessing the situation. She took a deep breath.

"Well you're not exactly healing are you? You're only taking the injury onto yourself."

"Yes, but we heal faster."

Meryl shook her head, this didn't seem right.

"Knives has a theory," Vash continued, "He thinks that the reason the man us this ability is so that the next time a plant explodes, we will take the injuries onto ourselves trying to save the plant."

"But no plant has survived. They died the instant the blubs explode."

"Knives thinks the next one will."

Meryl stayed still. It made sense. Whoever was after the humanoids knew that they would do anything to save a plant, even give up their own lives. She looked at her hand again,

"How did Knives find out?"

"He healed Milly's forhead."

The raven haired woman sighed, she was going to have fun explaining that to the doctors. Without another word, she set out to find the tall girl. But before she left she gave the humanoid a sharp clonk to the head.

"Next time you decide to use me as guinea pig, let me know first."

Vash rubbed the sore spot on his scalp as he watched her leave, this corners of his lips turned up.

-

Mr. Vash and Mr. Knives healed quite nicely the next few days, to the doctor's amazement. But he was more amazed to see that the sown up wound on her head had disappeared completely only to appear on Mr. Knives. Of course that too vanished the next day. Everyone had learned not to ask questions when it came to the four of them and Milly couldn't be more thankful. It felt wrong to lie to all these nice people when they were treating them so well.

Milly was walking back to Mr. Knives' room from Mr. Vash's. He was acting strange ever since the day he woke up. He rarely spoke to her and avoided looking at her. Milly bit her lip, had she done something? Maybe she was too harsh when she told him that she wouldn't let him hurt himself. She was only concerned for him. She didn't want to see him get hurt, and she especially didn't want to be the cause of it. But she still felt bad for raising her voice. Milly really didn't like doing that, but sometimes it was the only way.

She decided to make a stop at the cafeteria. She was going to apologize with some pudding, he wouldn't be able to resist that. Milly walked in to a bustling dining area, filled with patients and staff. She made her way over to the food and grabbed two cups of chocolaty goodness. As she stepped up to pay, she spotted familiar shoulders hunched over at an empty table. She frowned. Milly paid for the food and made her way over to him.

"I don't think you're supposed to be out of bed, Mr. Knives," she said, her honey voice filled with un-approval.

Knives grunted and continued eating. Milly's frown deepened. This was more serious than she thought. She pulled out the chair next to Mr. Knives and sat down. Still he didn't say anything. Carefully, the girl placed a chocolate pudding next to humanoid. He stopped and looked over from the corner of his eyes.

"I'm sorry for getting upset, Mr. Knives," Milly began, "I just didn't want you to get hurt."

She waited, no response. A lump grew in her throat. Milly bit her lip, but it seemed like Mr. Knives didn't acknowledge her. Defeated, she got up and started to walk away.

"I'm going to see the plant," he said.

Milly swung around, "What?"

"I'm going to see the plant," he repeated, "I'm sick of sitting here doing nothing. The sooner we get some answers, the sooner we can put a stop to him. So… if you want to come, you can."

Milly smiled and clapped her hands, "Oh, I'd love to, Mr. Knives! Yay, now I get to see you in action."

Mr. Knives didn't say anything again, but this time, he didn't have to.

-

He watched them leave the hospital. A sigh left his lips, how disappointing. He had such hopes for the former murderer. He wanted to make him his protégé, his legacy, his… but all those dreams have been destroyed. Now, he was infatuated with that woman, just like his brother.

He watched them leave the hospital; he watched them eat chocolate pudding.

-

Meryl Stryfe growled; she really hated him sometimes. Vash whined once again and poked her in her side.

"Merrrrylll…"

"Yes, Vash?" she gritted.

"Why am I still here? Look, I'm all healthy."

"Doctors want you here one more day, Vash."

"Aww, Merrrrylll!" he squealed, poking her even more.

"I swear Vash, if you poke me one more time…"

He stopped and grabbed her wrist.

"Wha…?"

"Let's go," he said jumping out of his bed.

"Where? Vash, the doctors…"

"Knives wants us to meet him by the plant."

Meryl didn't ask any more questions. Vash's voice sounded direct and serious. He pushed open the door and rushed out and Stryfe was right behind him.

The two reached the plant quickly. It was deserted. Meryl spotted Knives and Milly at the base of the bulb. The plant was hovering by them. Knives had a hand against the glass as if he were trying to calm her. Vash called out to them.

"Where is it?"

Knives handed Vash something, his eyes were dark. Vash took it, a card, the Jack-of-Hearts. Meryl's stomach sank. She eyed Vash; to no surprise, his face was wiped of all emotion. He turned the card over.

"What does it say?" Meryl asked, her voice dry.

Vash just handed her the card and walked over to the plant. Meryl looked down at the card, _Red October_.

"Red October? What does that mean?"

There was no reply from either of the brothers, but she knew that it was something of significance to them.

"It was a book," Vash said, his voice barely auditable, "Rem used to read it to us."

"But what does a book have to do with anything?"

Again, silence.

"He knows more about us than we thought, Stryfe."

The short woman stared at the Stampede. He had it on again, that mask that she never wanted to see. She cursed whoever was doing this, why couldn't they catch a break? Was that too much to ask for? She laughed to herself, yes, yes it was. Never in her life did she think that she would be in pursuit of someone so cold. Then again never in her life did she think she would be in pursuit of someone like Vash the Stampede. But Vash never intentionally killed anyone, he put himself in harm's way to save them.

Meryl shook her head, this was not the time. They had to figure out what the card meant and what their next move was. As if reading her mind, Knives answered,

"We have to go to October."

"I have to stay here," Vash said, "This is where Jack lived, if there is anything more about him, I'll find it here."

"But, Vash…" Meryl began.

"I'll go," Knives said. Vash nodded his head.

"But you can't go alone, Mr. Knives," Milly said.

"And you're in no condition to go with him, Milly," Meryl stated, knowing exactly what Thompson was going to say next. Taking a deep breath, Meryl said,

"I'll go with Knives."

There was a silence; Meryl wasn't sure how to categorize it. It wasn't awkward or heavy, it was just silent.

"No one needs to come with me, I can handle myself," Knives said harshly.

"Like you did at a week ago?" Meryl snapped, "Look whatever this man is doing, it's obviously only affecting the plants and if he comes after you again, I can help."

She knew Knives had no case against that, she was right. However, Knives being Knives just glared at empty space and bit his tongue.

So it was settled. Milly and Vash were to stay in April City while Meryl and Knives journeyed to October. Meryl Stryfe closed her eyes and took a deep breath; this was going to be interesting.

-

"Next time, I won't miss."

The room was frozen still, just as Mr. Chervil was. Water dripped from the broken glass vase and on to the floor. The only sound came from the girl in the bed, crying. Vash could feel the hate radiating from the Jack of Hearts. He wasn't playing, he was going to kill this man. Thomas' lips had gone white as he turned his head to face the shooter.

"What do you want?" he quivered.

"My brother back," Jack gritted.

"Your… your brother?"

"You killed him this morning because he was late on his rent."

Vash's eyes widened, that was his brother? He was sure now that Jack was definitely not planning on letting this man live.

"I… I can pay you… as much as you want…" Chervil said, shaking.

"I don't want your blood money, I want my brother back," Jack glared, his voice caked with malice.

"But," the man began, "but, he's dead."

"Well," Jack grinned menacingly, "then I guess you'll have to die."

He aimed at Thomas Chervil's heart. The man at the end of the barrel shouted out, only to be drowned out by his bedmate's scream. The infamous outlaw pulled the trigger.

* * *

--

Next Chapter: Two to Tango

That was the new chapter. I know it was a little heavy with the romance, but I couldn't help myself. I just couldn't keep those feelings hidden anymore... haha Plus, forgive any errors with my grammer and/or spelling. But, as always please let me know what you think, I always love your reviews... it keeps me going!!


	9. Two To Tango

So here I am... yeah I have no excuses, but I hope the chapter makes up for it. I plan on writing another one soon though. Please excuse any mistakes that I have made, and as always let me know so I correct them! Enjoy!

* * *

Two to Tango

---

It was awkward, even now, even after all this time, it was still awkward. They were alone, in the night, and not a word was said. Her heart beat unusually fast, she couldn't explain it. She felt like she was naked in a room full of people and yet it was just them. A light breeze brushed her face, she shivered. He looked at her, making her feel even more self conscious. Meryl blushed and looked away. She cursed herself; she didn't understand why she was acting like this. Knives grunted and shifted to get comfortable. As strange as it seemed to her, Meryl realized that she cared what Millions Knives thought of her. She couldn't in the world understand why, but his opinion mattered to her. For some reason she needed his approval. Meryl never realized that in the last few years that they had been together, she and Knives were never alone. Milly or Vash were always nearby. He didn't seem the least bit bothered by how isolated they were, but then again Millions wasn't the type to show emotion. The insurance agent let out a silent sigh, forcing herself to get comfortable. It's not like it was the end of the world, they were just alone. They were friends, well at least she considered him a friend, she wasn't sure if he did or not. He had shown some form of kindness towards her… well it was kindness for the former killer.

The only person he's ever truly been kind toward was Milly. Even with Vash, he'd sometimes grunt and walk away, but the way he acted around Milly, it was different… It was almost as if he cared for her. Meryl's stomach twisted at the thought. There was no way that the humanoid plant had any sort of feeling towards Milly, they were different species, it couldn't… She stopped. _Vash is a plant too_, she thought. But Vash was more human than plant, and Knives, well it's hard to imagine a man who shows no emotion to be human. _Well, doesn't caring for Milly make him human? _She knew the answer to that, and yet she was having a hard time believing. It's not that she had anything against him, but the memories of what he had done and what he put her and her friends through kept resurfacing.

"We should find a place for the night."

Knives voice startled her.

"Uh, yes. I think I see a town ahead."

Millions nodded and stepped harder on the pedal.

-

It was rundown room, in a rundown hotel, in a rundown little town, but it was cheap. Meryl looked gingerly at her bed. It had stains, rips and it looked far from comfortable, but it was better than sleeping in the open in that very uncomfortable vehicle. She set down her things and sat on the edge of her bed. Closing her eyes she reminded herself why she was doing this instead of going home where it was safe… no, nowhere was safe, it was just familiar. The raven haired woman fell back into the musty pillow and looked up at the cracked ceiling, how she missed familiarity.

She got up bright and early, like she did every day, not that she slept much during the night. Meryl sat at the small café that was below the hotel having breakfast. She cursed every time she lifted her arm. Her shoulder was sore from the bed. She was going to make Vash pay dearly for this. Knives hadn't come down from his room; he was still sleeping when she knocked on his door. He opened the door, bare-chested. Meryl blushed, she wasn't even comfortable seeing Vash without a shirt, but his brother? It felt wrong. But she couldn't take her eyes off of him, he was so droopy eyed it almost made her laugh. She chucked lightly as she took a bit out of her breakfast. For such a terrible place, the food was delicious.

"Something had to be good," she said to herself.

Soon after, they once again set out for October. It was still a while before they reached the city and Meryl was getting sick of sitting in a car for so long. She went over the events that took place in the last few days. They humanoid brothers found out that they had the power to heal others and they got a card from the so called Jack of Hearts to go to October. _Red October_, Meryl thought to herself. Vash had mentioned that it was a book that Rem used to read to them when they were children. It was probably a book that she brought over from the Old World, but how would the Jack of Hearts, if it was the real man, know about it?

"Knives?" Meryl started, "What is Red October about?"

Knives stared straight ahead, ignoring the fact that Meryl even existed. The insurance agent sighed, she didn't even know why she bothered.

"It's a story about a boy named Arian" Knives began.

Meryl stared at him in surprise.

"He is an orphan stranded in the middle of a war. He is taken prisoner by the enemy where he meets another boy, an older boy, a rebel. They try to escape several times; eventually the older one gets caught and killed. Arian escapes when the prison he is held in is raided. He goes to a nearby city and that's the end."

He said it so lifelessly Meryl wondered if there was more. If there was, unless he decided to tell her, she knew she wasn't going to find out today. Knives went back to starting at the road as if there was nothing else more important. However, the name Arian kept playing over and over in her head. _Like the mayor's son_, she thought to herself. As much as she wanted it to be a coincidence, it was too easy.

Meryl cursed he luck, closed her eyes and tried to enjoy her uncomfortable seat.

The bouncing of the vehicle began to slow and roaring engine came to a soft purr. Ms. Stryfe opened her heavy eyes to a red and purple sky, a backdrop to the setting sun. She sat up against her sore back and looked around. A sign high in the air read October, but it didn't seem like the October she heard of. It was supposed to be a bustling city, full of lights and people that never slept. But this place was deserted, no lights, no sounds, not a soul in sight. She looked over at Knives. He looked a bit surprised at the emptiness, but his eyes were narrowed and high on alert. Knives parked on the side of the road and got out. Meryl followed suit. The buildings were tall and in very good shape. It couldn't have been long ago that the residence of October left. It felt so eerie to be there, like something bad was going to happen. And to Meryl's dismay Knives pulled out his gun. He walked towards the nearest building cautiously.

Suddenly there was a rustling of feet and someone came running from inside. Knives took off after him. Meryl grabbed her derringer and ran after the platinum blonde.

It was a young man they were chasing. Meryl called out to him several times, assured him that they weren't going to hurt him, but he seemed to be terrified. She holstered her gun and told Knives to do the same. They weren't convincing him that they were harmless by running after him with weapons. Knives did it without an argument. He called out again, assuring the man that their weapons were put away and that they simply wanted to talk. The young man seemed ever more frightened. He kept looking back at Knives and running faster. He stumbled several times, but he would not let Knives catch up. The young man turned and disappeared into an alley. Not far behind, Meryl and Knives never lost sight of him. _What is he so scared about?_ Meryl could only imagine. He looked like he recognized the plant. She was starting to run out of breath. The raven haired woman looked at the man next to her. His face was hard and set, he wasn't going to give up so soon. They came to a dead end; the young man knew he was trapped. He was panting heavily, hand to his chest staring wide eyed at Knives. Meryl tried to catch her breath. Knives advanced toward the man when he screamed.

"NO!"

He began to claw at the side of the building trying to climb it. Meryl could see his fingers being to bleed. He slid down and immediately turned his back to the wall, pressing himself against it as much as he could. He pulled out a gun hidden under his belt and pointed to his head. Meryl's stomach fell.

"No!" he screamed again as Knives pulled out his weapon.

"Knives, put it away!" Meryl whispered harshly.

Million threw her a look and set it down. He kicked it towards the shaking man.

"I will not hurt you," he said his voice steady as can be.

His scared green eyes met Knives' and then looked at the silver gun on the ground, then back at Knives. He looked at Meryl. She took out one of her single shooter's and set it on the ground.

"We just want to ask some question-"

He pulled the trigger, but it wasn't pointed at his head anymore. The bullet found its target in Knives' shoulder. Knives didn't even cringe. The young man's green eyes widened even more. He pointed the gun to his head again, this time Meryl knew he would take his own life. Before he had a chance to pull the trigger, Derringer Meryl shot swiftly at his hand and the gun fell to the ground. He screamed in pain and crumbled to the ground. Knives marched up to him, grabbed him by his collar stood him up.

"PLEASE!! Please don't kill me! Not like the others!" the man screamed.

"Knives let him go!" Meryl yelled, "He's not going to hurt you."

Knives growled and dropped the quivering man. Meryl walked up to him and kneeled down.

"What happened here?"

He buried his face into his hands and curled up into a ball, shaking.

"Please, we're trying to put a stop to all this," she begged.

"Why did you start it then?" he chocked.

Meryl looked aghast. She looked at Knives before asking,

"What did we start?"

The head of dark hair frantically shook,

"No, no, not you," he yelled, then pointed at Knives, "him. He started it."

Meryl knit her brows in question, but let the poor man continue.

"He… he came to our city a few days ago and demanded that we leave. When we resisted he started killing people. He didn't use guns, he just looked at them. He made people jump from buildings. He said… he said he didn't like to use bullets because they were too messy! He killed my sister! You bastard, you killed my sister!"

He charged towards Knives, but the twin was too fast for him. He caught him by the throat and held him there. The man's bloody fingers wrapped around his hand trying to claw for a breath.

"KNIVES!"

Millions let go and stepped back. The young man scrambled onto his feet and took off.

"Knives…" Meryl began.

"I killed them," he whispered and walked away.

-

Vash went back to the place where Jack once lived. Milly insisted on coming along insisting that Meryl would never forgive her if anything happened to him. He was rather thankful for her help; even though her arm was broken her mind was still sharp as ever. They walked into the home of the former Jack of Hearts and the place where they were last attacked. There was no longer a menacing presence, but Vast still felt a lingering evil in the building. There had been a lot of horrible things that happened in this place and most of them left a scar. The typhoon and the insurance agent searched almost every room but found nothing but dust. The last place that needed to be checked was the room the figure was in. Vash stepped into the room hesitantly; he didn't feel very comfortable in here. They may not have been a threat anymore but they control the man had on him and his brother disturbed him. He scanned the room; it wasn't much different than the others, a bed, a table and a window.

"This place is spooky," Milly chirped softly.

Vash smiled, comforting himself more than her. He moved to the window and looked out at the sky. It was red, just like the day the infamous Jack of Hearts died.

-

The bullet made its way to the mayor's head and in an instant found its target. The mayor screamed and so did the girl in his bed. Vash's eyes widened. Jack pulled the trigger again and found his mark. The man covered his ear, or where his ears used to be. Blood trickled down his face and on to his expensive bedding. He screamed louder and louder. He screamed that it hurt, that he wanted to be dead. Jack walked up to crying man, grabbed his hair and pulled his face close.

"You want to die?" he hissed.

Chervil nodded, tears streaming down his face.

"I promised my brother I would never kill. Besides I want people to see as you are a monster. I want your children to scream when they see you. I want your wife to be disgusted when she comes near you. I want your mistresses to never want you share your bed," he spat looking at the naked girl, "And most of all, I want you to remember me when you look at yourself in the mirror and mercy I didn't show."

With that he shoved the mayor back on to the bed. Vash sighed. Although he didn't agree with the way Jack treated the man, at least no one died. Jack turned around and spotted Vash. They locked eyes for a second before Jack looked past him. He walk towards the door and passed Vash ignoring the fact that he was even there. The Humanoid looked back at the mayor clutching to the sides of his head, screaming, rocking back and forth. It was a pitiful sight, but he still had his life.

The Sixty Billon Double Dollar Man followed the other outlaw out of the mansion. Surprisingly, they were able to make it out of the front door without any resistance. Vash looked back at the house, he could still hear a dull scream, it made his stomach clench.

"Don't feel sorry for him," Jack said, his voice void of all emotion, "He doesn't deserve it."

"Do you?"

The Jack of Hearts stopped in his tracks. He turned to look at Vash, his eyes dark. The blonde cringed; Jack reminded him a lot of his brother, the lack of emotion, the hate that simply radiated like the suns and his cruel methods. Hell, they were even fighting for the same cause. The only difference was, Jack was not as radical as Millions. Jack has a conscience, his brother's voice in his head that said stop when he was about to go too far. Every time Vash tried to be the voice, literally, he was pushed aside. He could see Jack contemplate his question. He smirked, turned around and continued walking.

The sky had turned blood red in the short time they two outlaws were inside the mansion. It was still night time but it's almost as if the planet itself felt the anger that the Jack felt. Instead of going back to his uncle's he walked to his brother's grave. Vash followed, he didn't want to leave this teenager alone, surprisingly the thief didn't object. There were flowers on his grave. Geo-plants were hard to come by, and their fragrant flowers were even harder to find, so to have some cut and set on one's grave was either a symbol of one's wealth and power or of one's generosity. Jack sat down at side of the mound and eased off his robes. He looked at the head stone, face set. Vash wanted to say sorry, that he knew what it was like to see someone he cared about get killed. However, the words wouldn't escape his lips. Nothing he was going to say was going to bring his brother back, and his apology wasn't going to sooth his pain.

"He is my father," Jack said calmly.

Vash stared at him, he wasn't expecting that. He waited for Jack to continue.

"He took my mother on as his mistress," he hissed, "She was a fool and fell in love. She wouldn't see that he was the reason she was a widow with a child. When she found out that she was going to have another child, she was so happy. She wanted to be a family again, but the bastard didn't want anything to do with it. He told that she didn't please him anymore."

Jack's face clenched.

"She never spoke a word after that," he continued, "She died when I was born. He took care of her when she was in solitude and then he took care of me. Despite how out of control I got, he never complained once. My brother might have been a rebel but he knew what was right and what was wrong. I remember, he always said," he said closing his eyes, "that regret should never have a place in life. To live it to the fullest extent and never give up in what you believe."

Jack opened his dark eyes and looked at the head stone and whispered,

"Idiot."

A lump had formed in Vash's throat. So much pain, he didn't deserve it. He heard Jack chuckle. Slowly he looked up at the sky and began to laugh, like there wasn't a care in the world. He pulled out his gun, aimed it at his temple and before Vash the Stampede could even flinch, the Jack of Hearts pulled the trigger.

-

Vash closed his eyes as he replayed the scene over and over in his head. He never forgave himself for that night. Vash stayed with to prevent the very thing that happened. He sensed that the boy was unstable, but he pulled out that gun and pulled the trigger so quickly that it even took the Typhoon by surprise. Vash could still feel the blood seeping through his jacket, his hands soaked in blood. He was horrified. He could feel the splatter of blood dripping from his forehead. Vash didn't move the entire night. He simply sat there helpless and traumatized. He had lost another person he cared about that day. He may have not known the boy for long but he had more in common with him than anyone else. The Jack lost his mother, and his brother. Vash lost Rem and his brother was lost to him. There was a reason Vash disapproved of suicide, it causes more pain to the people around the victim. It's a selfish act to escape oneself and not once considering the people left behind. He left the town at dawn the next morning, he didn't even have the courage to move Jack's body, it was going to be buried next to his brother's anyway. The blonde lowered his head into his hands and sighed, his head was starting to hurt.

Milly Thompson walked up to his side and stood quietly next to him. She didn't say anything, she didn't have to. Just her presence by his side was all he needed to know that the past is the past and his future was awaiting. He turned around and gave her a truly hearty and warm smile and of course, Stun Gun Milly returned a smiled that was sweet as can be. Just as Vash turned back to the setting twin suns something caught his eye. On the frame of the window was a feather, glowing ever so lightly, almost pulsating like a heartbeat. He picked it up and studied it. It felt so familiar, so warm, like a feather from… he dropped the feather. The Stampede held his breath as the small glowing light danced to the ground. The insurance agent gave him a funny look. Vash brought his hand up to his face, a shimmering residue stuck to his fingers. He rubbed them together feeling the powder like substance. From the corner of his eyes he saw Milly pick up the feather. She gasped catching Vash's attention.

Milly's eyes widened, but they were glossy staring off into an unknown distance. Her body began to fall limp. Just as she hit the ground humanoid caught her in his arms calling her name. She didn't respond. Vash tried to pull the feather out of her hands, but her fingers held on tightly. He called her name again, still nothing. The feather began to glow brighter and brighter and Vash's heart began to beat faster. He didn't want to lose her too. He didn't want to be the cause of her death. The feather glowed even brighter. Vash begged her name, receiving the same silence. Then, just like a light bulb, the feather burnt out. Milly dropped it, gasping in air. She looked up at the blonde, dazed. Her eyes were trying to adjust to the light. She felt a pair of arms engulf her in a hug tight enough to squeeze the breath out of her.

"Are you ok?" he asked, his voice full of guilt, "Meryl would've killed me if anything happened to you."

Milly smiled into his shoulder, carefully returning her embrace.

"I'm alright, Mr. Vash, I promise. I'm not exactly sure wha…" she stopped.

"What? What's wong?" Vash asked, scanning her over.

"My… my arm. It doesn't hurt anymore…" she moved her arm over her shoulder.

Milly looked back at the spiky blonde and huffed,

"Mr. Vash! Did you do the same thing Mr. Knives did? Did you heal me?"

"No, no Milly, I didn't. Look," he moved both his arms over his head.

Milly still wasn't convinced. She knew how much it hurt to do that with a broken arm, but she also knew Vash would lie through his teeth. She was taking him to the hospital the second they got back. If anything happened to Mr. Vash on her watch, Milly would never forgive herself.

Vash took out a knife from his boot and flipped it open. Carefully he cut Milly's cast open. He asked her to stretch it out, slowly. The insurance agent did as she was told. Ever so lightly she extended her arm, nothing. There was no pain, in fact she, she told Vash that she felt better than she had in years. All of her muscles that were tense now relaxed. She felt revived. Vash sat next to her puzzled. He picked up the feather that Milly was holding. All the energy it possessed vanished. The twin knew for certain now that the feather had come from a Plant. Then why didn't he sense its presence? As far as he was aware a Plant doesn't lose its feathers… even when it's dead… Vash pocketed the tiny feather and made his way out of the room, he had one more stop to make. Milly grabbed her cast and followed suit. They got all of the clues they were going to get from here.

-

Stryfe cut the entry wound on his shoulder and carefully removed the bullet just like she had so many times with Vash. Knives didn't let any sound escape his lips. Milly was the only one he ever let touch his wounds other than his brother. He didn't know what was so different with this insurance agent compared to the other one. Knives sighed inwardly, he knew exactly what was different and he hated himself for it. He couldn't do what he wanted and most of all he knew he shouldn't, especially now. Millions Knives does not have a weakness, and Milly Thompson was becoming one. His stomach still cringed every time he thought of her limp body in his hands. Millions cursed her for making him feel the way he did, especially now. He had his family to protect, but every day he was growing more and more concerned for her life. Every day he found himself thinking about her, wondering where she was when she wasn't nearby. That's why he volunteered to go to October, it was convenient and an opportunity to get away from her. Unfortunately, escape was a thing only to be desired. She still haunted his thoughts. At the hotel, he fell asleep thinking of her. She conducted his dreams, and his actions. But he didn't want to admit it. It sickened him that he was feeling this way. He was sitting at an abandoned hospital thinking about her rather than the ordeal that just took place. Even then he thought about her. He thought about her when he decided to put the gun down instead of shooting the bastard. He thought of her when he had the man's neck in his crush. He thought of her face, her wide eyes looking at him, scared, as if she'd seen a monster. That's why he dropped him. Not because Stryfe was yelling him to stop, not because he promised his brother he wouldn't kill, but because he didn't ever want Milly to look at him like that. It hit him then that he killed them, killed all those people when he was trying to persuade his to join him. He realized that that was the look she would've had when she saw them. Knives knew she forgave him for everything he ever did, but just the thought of her even once hating him drove him insane. Millions closed his eyes and pushed aside all he was feeling to concentrate on the problem at hand.

Meryl Stryfe sowed up the gash and wrapped the bandage around his shoulder, tying it. It wasn't how Knives liked it, but it would have to do. She picked up the tools and cleaned them as well as she could. Although he had blocked out Meryl's thoughts, he knew exactly what she was thinking. Knives pulled his shirt over his head, trying not to agitate his injury and said,

"I think he disguised himself as me."

The raven haired woman stopped what she was doing and turned around and waited for him to continue.

"I don't know how, but that man was very certain that I was the one who did this."

Meryl stayed quiet for a second, then she said, "So what do we do?"

"We go to the plant."

Stryfe nodded her head and began to wash her hands.

-

Knives' sister had been waiting for him since before he came to October. He stepped up to the glass where she hovered and placed his hand against hers. She looked exhausted like the rest of his family. Meryl excused herself to go see if she could stop the energy being drawn from her. Knives closed his eyes and entered her mind. He wanted to see if he could catch a glimpse of the man who impersonated him. The Plant was scared, just like all of the others. He dug as deep as could into her memories, at first she resisted, but slowly began to ease. He searched backwards to the time when the imposter came. It was clear as day in her mind. Knives' brows narrowed as the scene played out in her head.

He heard yelling and screaming. People were running away from the Plant, their faces in horror. There was only one figure coming towards the Plant and everyone was trying to avoid coming anywhere close to him. He walked up, his hood over his shadowing his face. The figure stopped and placed a hand on the glass, Knives could make out a smile, a smile that was all too familiar to him. Slowly the man brought a hand up to his head and slipped off the hood. Knives' heart skipped a beat. He was staring at his own replica, the same eyes, the same hair, the same sickly smile. He spoke, but Knives couldn't understand what he was saying. He saw the man sigh and close his eyes. Suddenly all the screaming drowned away into silence, he opened his eyes. He stared right at Knives, _I know you'll be watching Knives, so instead on a card this is your clue. Who am I, me or you?_ With an amused smile he broke the connection, throwing Knives' mind out of the Plant's. He stared at his sister. She was sitting at the bottom of the bulb, exhausted and confused. He knew she sensed that the imposter wasn't Knives, but it still scared her.

Millions heard Meryl call his name from the door way.

"I can't seem to shut it down," she said, "What did you find out?"

Knives looked at her, unsure of how to answer.

"Whoever did this wasn't just disguised as me, he was me," he began slowly, "He had my eyes, my hair… even my voice."

Meryl couldn't wrap her head around it, "What do you mean?"

"He was an exact copy of me…"

"How is that possible?"

Knives shook his head, just as lost as she was. Meryl was silent for a moment, trying to contemplate what the humanoid twin had just told her. Defeated she said,

"You should go shut down the energy consumption, I'll stay out here."

Knives nodded and headed towards the control room. Inside was all of the equipment that he was so familiar with, even if he hadn't dealt with it in years. He walked up to the control console and began the shut down sequence. It took him about twenty minutes to finish and slowly reduce power consumption. The equipment shut off and all of the lights in the building flickered away. Just as Knives turned to walk away, he heard a faint beeping coming from the side of the console. A bright red light began to flash. He walked up to where the red light was coming from. It was a small box with an antenna, it looked like a transmitter. _A transmitter for what?_ Without warning the entire room was engulfed in red light. A metallic voice came on the PA system,

"_Warning, system overload. Warning, system overload. Please commence shut down sequence. Warning…_"

"What?" Knives growled. Immediately he began the steps that shut down the plant. That was when he heard it, the music. He cursed himself, he should've known. The song was taking over his mind, tearing up his mind. His legs began to shake and his head threatened to explode. Knives breathed in deeply grinding his teeth against the pain; he wasn't going to let his sister die.

"_Evacuate console._ _Systems reaching critical in 3…2…1…_"

Knives screamed and fell to the ground, his vision fading to black.

-

Meryl gasped for air. Her ears were ringing and her vision was blurred and the only thing she could feel was pain flooding through her entire body. She tried to open her mouth, but not a sound came out. She looked beside her to find the Plant was lying next to her, shimmering blood every pooling beneath the body. As her eyes rolled into her head, she saw a river of red mixing with metallic blood. As she lost consciousness, Meryl Stryfe prayed that she would go where the angels go.

* * *

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Next Chapter: It's only Divine

Well that was chapter 9! What do you think? Is Meryl dead? Was there too much going on, not enough... It has been a long time since I posted anything, so and help is helpful! Please, please read and review!! They are always appreciated, truly. I love to hear what you think!


	10. It's Only Divine

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So here is the next chapter. I have been busy with classes so that's why it took so long for me to update. I tried to stay as true to the characters as possible. I hope you like it!!! Stuff happens!! Hahahahahahahahaha!!! Yeah I'm tired! Enjoy!!

* * *

It's only Divine

---

Vash the Stampede stood facing the two grave stones he never wanted to see. He closed his eyes and tried to push away the memories. Vash bit his lip, he promised himself that he wasn't going to cry. He felt so defeated, so alone. Milly stood beside him, as quiet as the night air. Vash laid his fingertips on the head stone, gently brushing away the dust that gathered on top of it. He read the name on the tombstone again, repeating it over in his mind, Arian. He never forgot it. The boy may have been the Jack of Hearts to the world, but to him he was just a scared kid who lost everything. He let his hand rest on the stone for a second, feeling the roughness of the rock before shoving his hands in his jacket pocket. Vash smiled softly at Milly and they both walked back to town.

It was thirty minutes past the time that Knives and Meryl were supposed to check in, Vash was starting to get worried. He tried to contact his brother himself, but he was blocked off. Vash sighed, he knew his brother probably had a good reason, but that didn't stop him from worrying. He took another sip from his drink, his eyes down cast. He could feel the women in the room eyeing him. Their dresses cut low, the skirts hiked up one side, reveling milky skin. He avoided their gaze, he had too much on his mind. The door to saloon jingled as Milly entered. Vash looked up, her eyebrows were knotted. She came and sat down next to him, her lips pressed to a thin line. Vash knew she wanted to say something, but she didn't know how. She was worried too, probably more that he was. He waited for her to talk.

Finally she looked at him and began to speak. Her voice was soft and raspy. She seemed confused. She bit her lip and explained how she thought heard Knives' voice about an hour ago. Milly said that she thought she had imagined it but now she wasn't so sure. Vash stared at her; it was odd what she was saying, but waited for her to go on. It was like Knives was trying to scream, she breathed, but his voice came out in a coarse whisper. The Stampede narrowed his eyes, this didn't sound good. He tried contacting his brother again and got nothing. Something was wrong and Vash was more than sure of it.

Just as he was about head towards the door, Vash heard Milly's name. He turned towards the front of the bar, his heart nearly stopped. A man stood by the door, brown hair to match his skin and dark eyes Vash would never forget. The man lifted his hand and waved in his direction and Milly waved back. He came towards them; it was like seeing a ghost. Milly spoke as the man approached, but the typhoon didn't hear a word. He saw him extend his hand, but Vash couldn't move his own. Gingerly he took his hand away and looked at Milly. Vash finally heard Milly's honey sweet voice call his name. Vash turned towards her, eyes still lost in memories.

"This is Arian."

_No_, Vash thought in a desperate whisper,_ no, he's not_. Vash slowly extended his hand and Arian did the same.

"Nice to meet you, Mr. Vash," Arian said, smiling.

"Do you have a brother?" Vash asked before he could stop himself.

Arian looked at him, puzzled. He chuckled and said,

"Well, yes I do," he looked at the blonde comically, "I've had women ask me that question before, but I think this is the first time a man has."

Vash simply stared at him, he wasn't feeling humorous. This was too much of a coincidence, all of it. The so called return of Jack, the Red October, and now this man who looks exactly like the Arian he knew. But Vash knew without a doubt that he wasn't the one impersonating Jack. He didn't have that sense of evil surrounding him. The humanoid looked st him blankly again, playing over the last time he's seen that face.

As if a light bulb went off in his head, Arian reached into his pocket and pulled out an envelope. He handed it to Milly explaining that it had come in that morning at the hospital. Milly took it and read the name of the sender. Surprised, she handed the letter to Vash, it was from the Doctor. The image of the Doc brought the humanoid back to reality and barely tearing his eyes away from the man before him, Vash began to read the letter. The handwriting was shaky; he could barely make out the words:

_Vash,_

_You must return to Seed City immediately. It's Jessica! Another plant died and she was there. Something's happening to Jessica… she's changing. You must come right away. Please!_

_Doctor._

_Changing?_Vash thought to himself. The letter was clearly written in a hurry, something was wrong. Without hesitation, Vash started towards the door. He got everything he could from April, he only hoped that Knives would get more from October. Milly ran after him. He handed the letter to the tall insurance agent as he walked out the door. Her eyes scanned the paper, widening with confusion and concern.

"But Mr. Vash, how are we going to get there?" she asked, her voice glazed with worry.

She was right they had no way to get to Seed City. There weren't any bus routes to the city because they just finished building it and Knives took the jeep that the Doctor had loaned them. Vash couldn't wait for his brother to contact him, he had to leave now, but where was he going to get a jeep from. He tried contacting his brother again, still nothing. Vash cursed under his breath, something was definitely wrong with his brother too. The spiky blonde knew that his brother would never stay out of contact without a purpose, but it still felt wrong. The emptiness at the other end bothered Vash, it was too quiet. He could hear his own thoughts being bounced back to him like an echo. And what did the Doc mean by changing? He said that she was there when the plant died and no she was changing? His heart raced thinking of her covered in glass. He had to find a jeep now!

"I can take you there."

Vash the Stampede looked up at that familiar face that haunted his dreams so long ago.

"I have nothing else to do here, so I can take you. I have a jeep," Arian smiled.

Vash looked at him, pushing back his thoughts.

"Thank you," he said and followed the mayor's son.

-

It was cold, the ground against Knives' cheek. Carefully he opened his eyes against the orange glow of the suns. Everything was so quiet; he could even hear his steady heart beat. Knives pushed his ginger body off of the ground, spitting out the sand that made its way into his mouth. Where was he? How did he get here? He looked around; the light of the orange and pink sky blinded him making him cringe in pain. There was nothing but sand mounds everywhere he looked. Knives cursed under his breath, he failed again to protect his family again. With a low groan, Millions began to wobble, calling the insurance agent's name. With no response, he called out again, his voice dry. With no luck he tried contacting his brother. The platinum blonde screamed, falling to his knees. It felt like someone was gouging a hole into his skull. He stood up, blinking the water that gathered in his eyes. Millions called out his partner's name again, only to have the wind howl back to him. He climbed a sand dune, calling out again. The idea that the so called Jack of Hearts might have her occurred to him, but he had a strange feeling that the raven haired woman was close. As he reached the top he spotted her and his breath caught in his throat. Her white clothes were dyed red with blood, and her skin glowing faintly against the scarlet dirt. Knives' feet took off before his brain had time to register what his eyes had seen. He slid on to his knees next to her and gathered her into his lap. His eyes widened. There wasn't a scratch on her only the gash on her back. Her clothes were soaked in blood. He tried to wake her hoping that maybe she just lost consciousness after the explosion. It didn't answer all of his questions, but she would at least be awake. Meryl's eyes stayed closed. He couldn't even feel her breath. Knives shook her again, not knowing what else to do. This was unlike him and he knew that. He was always in control, always. If she was gone, then that was the end of it, nothing more. However there was doubt in his mind. He knew for a fact that his sister was dead in October, but Meryl, no, she was still… He begged her silently to open her eyes. He closed his own as an image of Milly crying flashed into his mind. He didn't want to make her cry. He saw Vash, his was face covered in shadow, but his pain was clearly visible. Knives didn't want to take away another important person in his brother's life. _Wake up Stryfe, wake up!_

The raven haired woman stirred, taking in a sharp breath of air. Knives stared at her, astonished. Meryl sighed and opened her eyes slowly letting them adjust to the light. She turned her head and looked into Knives' pale blue eyes and whispered,

"Who are you?"

-

Seed City was deserted. It was almost as if the entire population had left. No one even came to greet them. Arian gently rolled to a stop at the building Vash pointed to. This was a strange city, he had never heard of it. It was new, but why was it so empty? The three occupants got out of the car and made their way to the door. Vash knocked and almost immediately the door swung open. A young man, no older than himself stood on the other side as if he had been waiting there the entire time. Arian heard Milly gasp at the sight of him. Mr. Eric looked like he hadn't slept or eaten in days. His left arm was wrapped in gauze and a thin scar stretched from his cheek to the bridge of his nose. He looked at Vash and Milly in desperation. Without a word he turned and walked away, Vash and Milly right behind him. Confused Arian tailed behind, but kept his thoughts to himself.

They came to a room that was labeled 'Infirmary'. The door slid open, Arian's eyes widened, advanced technology! He whipped his head towards Milly, it didn't seem like the door even fazed her, she simply had the same worried look that she had since they left April. Wirily he walked in as Eric made his way to the back. Arian gazed about at the various instruments in the room. They all looked so simple but never in his life has he seen anything like them. The tubes, the wires and the beds even the lighting felt so alien, as if they had descended from a distant time. The group came to a halt causing Arian to barely miss bumping into Vash the Stampede. He apologized, but it didn't seem like he was paying attention. Vash's eyes were fixated onto the person on the bed. Arian looked past the typhoon; he caught his breath. Milly took a step back, her eyes quivering. A girl was lying on the white bed with wavy brown hair. Her body was glowing, but patches of her skin were glowing brighter than others, patches that had sprouted feathers. He heard Eric whisper her name longingly, Jessica. She turned her head, eyes void of recognition.

"Vash is here. Do you remember him?" Eric pointed towards the blonde.

Jessica shifted her eyes to Vash and stared. She looked at him as if she was boring into his soul. The Typhoon's name escaped her lips, it sounded like a song but it was so lifeless. Arian could almost hear the humanoid's heart breaking.

"She's been like this for almost a week," a voice said from behind.

A short bald man stood, his hands behind, him looking at the girl.

"What happened, Doc?" Vash the Stampede asked.

'Doc' walked up to the girl's bed and took her hand, "It started a few weeks ago."

-

The light of the suns was almost completely gone and it was getting harder and harder to see by the minute. Knives took another agonizing step dragging an unconscious Meryl with him. She passed out a while back, to his relief. Even though he could barely carry his own weight, he would rather support both of them than have her look at him as if he never existed. In the distance he could see 2 points of light, growing larger little by little, then the quiet rolling thunder of an engine. He let Meryl slide to the sand and raised his arms, forcing one foot in front of the other. Knives gasped for air as he tripped face first. The vehicle came to a screeching halt. A woman stepped out with a man and rushed towards him. With a dry mouth he whispered,

"Nearest hospital…"

The man and woman looked at each other, confused.

"Take us there," Knives rasped, pointing to Meryl Stryfe.

There was a pause then he felt the man and woman pick him up and set him in the back seat, a while later he felt Meryl's body next to him. The engine roared on and the vehicle began to move.

-

"It started a few weeks ago," the Doctor began, "She started acting strange. She would forget things, forget people's faces, then she simply stopped talking or doing anything at all. She would just stand or stare off. This was a week ago. Soon after that she began to glow and sprout… well feathers. We did some tests and…"

He looked like he wasn't sure how to finish the sentence.

"And?" Vash demanded.

"Well her DNA was changing, she was becoming another species. Vash she's becoming a plant."

Vash looked down at the girl; he knew that that presence was familiar. Jessica was still starting at him, her eyes empty of any emotion. Eric walked up to her side kissed her cheek, her eyes stayed fixed on Vash. Eric looked up at him his face in desperation, Vash knew exactly what he was asking.

"I don't know what I can do," Vash said truthfully.

Eric nodded his head, biting his lips. He looked like he wanted to punch something, punch Vash, but he simply took Jessica's hand put his lips against it and let his tears fall.

"She doesn't recognize me at all," he whispered, "Why does she recognize you?"

Eric turned her hand to kiss the back of it exposing her right palm. Vash grabbed her wrist. There was a deep gash that hadn't healed. Her skin looked smooth, clear of all blemishes, but this was the only scar that was left behind. The feathers here were larger than the others as well, almost as if they had first sprouted here.

"How did she get that cut?" Vash asked.

"She was helping clear away the glass from the explosion," Eric recalled, "The piece she cut herself on was pulled out of the plant."

Suddenly he remembered what Knives discovered not too long ago. He brushed his thumb over the wound and immediately he could feel the electricity between himself and the girl. Vash closed his eyes as his palm began to split open. Jessica was still while the sprouts of feathers melted away. Vash could hear gasps around the bed just as her skin healed over the cut. Vash took his hand away, he felt different. He looked at his right hand the gash had already healed over.

Jessica took a sharp breath, her eyes wide open. She looked around, life returning to her features.

"What happened?" she said, eying the group that had gathered.

Eric threw his arms around her, begging her if she remembered him. Slightly confused, the girl laughed and gave her fiancée a kiss on the cheek. Smiling at him, she asked for an explanation. Before anyone could speak the Doctor pushed it aside, commanding her to get some rest. He put Eric in charge, who seemed too lost in Jessica's arms to listen. The other four left the embracing couple and headed to a quiet place to talk. The Doctor gave the new comer a questioning look, but extended his hand at Vash's nod. Arian gingerly shook it, his mind still replaying the scene that played out only a few minutes ago.

"Eric, Jessica and a few others had gone to June to get some supplies when the plant there exploded," the Doctor explained.

He sat down on the couch across from Vash, while Arian looked out of the window with Milly by his side. Vash could only imagine the thoughts that must be racing in his mind after what he had just seen. Answers to his questions would have to wait until later.

"Of course, they were the first ones to help. The damage was minimal compared to other incidents, but unfortunately the plant was killed. From what I was told, Jessica slipped and landed on glass, there was still blood on that piece…"

The Doctor paused, wondering how to phrase the next question. Vash knew exactly what he was thinking.

"Is it possible that the plant's blood was changing her DNA?" the Doctor said boldly.

Vash paused before he said, "Well there has never been a direct contact between a plant and a human before, so it is possible that the plant DNA may act as a virus inside the human body. But then again, I am a humanoid… there is also the possibility that whoever is causing the plants to die may have something to do with this."

The Doctor considered Vash's words, it was a troubling concept, he needed time to process. Many more questions remained in the old man's mind, but Vash said,

"That's all I can think of right now, Doc. Any further clarifications need to be done by Knives. He understands this kind of stuff more than I do."

He offered the Doctor a smile, it wasn't much, but it would have to do. He excused himself saying that his mind was at rest that she was the only one in her that state. The door slid behind the Doctor and Vash sighed under his breath. Once again he tried to contact his brother, only to be blocked off. This was unusual. His brother was never this late in getting back with him. He tried again, but felt nothing. All he could feel is that he was alive. He prayed that the raven haired woman was too.

Vash heard footsteps approach him from behind it was the mayor's son. He laid down on the sofa opposite Vash and looked up at the high ceiling. Vash opened his mouth to explain, but was stopped by a wave of the hand. Without taking his gaze away, Arian said he didn't want to be enlightened. He merely wanted a place to stay and that he would be gone in the morning. Vash turned to Milly, who had a shadow of disappointment over her face, but her lips were still turned up into an understanding smile. Vash's heart ached, he was her first friend in a long time and because of him he was going to leave. Milly whispered a sweet goodnight and took to her old guest room. Vash wondered if she ever regretted meeting him, he wondered if her partner ever did.

A rapping at the door brought Vash from his dreams. He had been talking with Rem, seeking her advice and revisiting the days when everything seemed so perfect. A low groan erupted from the sofa next to him as Arian sat up. He scratched his head and looked towards Vash then out at the window, it was still dark. The knock came again, this time a little louder. Pushing himself to stand, Vash made his way to the door and opened it. A young lady stood on the other side with blonde hair and pink cheeks. She introduced herself as Helen, a nurse working at the infirmary. Immediately Vash's senses flared.

"Is Jessica alright?" he asked.

"Um, yes she is fine… I'm actually here about your brother and friend," she said, a little unsure.

Knives and Meryl? They were here? Why didn't he sense his brother? Without any delays he let the nurse lead him. He tried to contact his brother again, nothing. Vash quickened his pace.

A crowd of sleepy eyes had gathered outside the infirmary door. Vash gently pushed his way through and stepped into a bustling room. He saw his brother's frame beyond a curtain, no one was with him, but he was still alive. Almost every hand in the medical center was occupied by the body next to him. Vash spotted Milly in the corner, tears streaming down her face. Vash's heart fell, that only meant one thing. He heard his name called out, it was the Doctor. The old man looked grave but waved his hand for him to come over. Taking one step at a time, he moved, praying that by some miracle that by the time he reached her he can see her smiling face. Just inches away from the curtain, Vash took a deep breath and slid open the curtain. It wasn't her… no… it was… but it wasn't. Her hair, her clothes and the shape of her face were the same, but it wasn't the woman her remembered. He heard the fast beeping of machines and someone say that her heart beat was unstable, that her breathing was shallow, but none of it affected him. Vash simply stared at the body on the bed.

Meryl's skin was pale, covered in a layer of glowing fuzz. Her eyes had lost their color and vitality, and her face was hard as stone. It didn't seem like she knew anything that was going on around her, she simply stared off into the distance. Vash let her name escape his lips, she blinked and all of the beeping grew louder. Every eye turned towards the tall blonde.

Meryl lifted a limp hand and reached out, stretching it towards the Typhoon. As if it were the most natural thing to do, Vash reached out his own hand.

"Senpai!"

Milly rushed past Vash and took the raven haired woman's hand, the sounds of the monitors seized to a comfortable rhythm. Vash stared at his empty hand for a second before letting it fall to his side.

"She's stabilizing," the Doctor said quietly.

Vash nodded, watching Milly beg her partner to open say something. He turned and walked towards his brother's bed.

-

Days passed and Knives stayed unconscious. Everyday Meryl was growing more and more feathers and the source was getting harder to find. Milly never left Meryl's side and Arian, who decided to stay for Milly, never left either. Vash stayed by his brother's side for most days, only taking a peek towards Meryl when he walked past her to the door. He could feel her changing, slipping away. The presence of a plant within the walls was becoming more and more apparent and the Meryl he knew was fading away. If something wasn't done soon, Vash knew he would lose her forever. He attempted to communicate with her like he would any other plant, but every time the confusion, the chaos and the pain overwhelmed even his own senses. He knew he was becoming a plant too, well at least more of a plant. He was more aware now. His abilities were sharpening. It took the gash on his hand to heal in an hour. Still, none of his abilities were going to help Meryl. Without finding the source, he couldn't save her. Vash let his face fall into his hands, _What do I do? Rem, please tell me what to do._ But an answer didn't come; the only thing he could hear was the steady beeping of the machines. The Typhoon squeezed his eyes tightly and let the lump in his throat escape. He bit his lip so he wouldn't make a sound. Slowly he pushed himself off the chair on his brother's side and began to walk to the door. Just as he passed the insurance agent's bed, he stopped. He was running away. She needed him and he was running away. Vash's eyes stung as he looked towards Meryl's bed. His feet carried him towards the raven haired woman and his mind didn't stop them. He stood in front of her bed for a moment before pulling aside the curtain.

Her eyes were closed; she looked so peaceful. He sat down on the chair that Milly sat on and stared at her hand. There was so much he wanted to say to her. He wanted to apologize for everything that had happened, if it weren't for him she would still be herself, klonking him over the head for eating doughnuts. The image brought a smile to his lips. Carefully, Vash took her hand; it was soft. He laced his fingers with hers and brought it to his lips. He whispered her name against the knot in his chest. Without moving her hand he looked up at her face.

"Meryl," he repeated, "if you can hear me, please come back."

Meryl's expression didn't change at all.

"Meryl, please, come back," Vash begged, letting the pools in his eyes fall, "I'll be good. I'll… I'll never touch another doughnut. I'll quit drinking. I'll do anything, just please, come back!"

He waited for a response. He waited for her to open her eyes, sit up and yell at him that he's lying about the doughnuts. However, she stayed still, simply breathing. Vash pressed her hand harder against his lips, tightening his fingers.

"Please, Meryl, don't… don't leave me," he choked, "I need you, Meryl. Please? I—"

A glass behind Vash broke, immediately followed by a low groan. Vash whipped around to see his brother move his head. Carefully, Vash placed Meryl's hand back at her side. Quickly he wiped his eyes and went back to his brother's bed side.

Knives looked around the infirmary, fighting the bright lights. He looked down at the floor where a puddle of water had gathered surrounded by pieces of glass. Millions tried to push himself to sit up, but his body resisted, he hissed.

"Don't do that," Vash said.

Knives turned towards Vash. He knitted his eyebrows, as if he couldn't recognize him.

"Where are we?" he said.

"Seed City," Vash said taking a seat, "A couple dropped you off here. Apparently they found you not too far from here."

"What? That's impossible! We were in October."

"I think you had help," Vash said, "Knives, what happened?"

Million Knives took a deep breath and recited his story. He told his about the man who shot him. He explained how he saw his own face on the imposter and how his attempts to shut down the plant failed. Vash listened, his chest tightening every time he heard Meryl's name. It was so surreal to Vash; everything that happened to them seemed planned. The worst part was, he didn't see a way of escape. Knives finished his story and paused. He looked at Vash again, confused.

"You seem different..." he hesitated before he continued, "Like a plant. You feel more like a plant."

Vash sighed and recounted the past few days. His brother listened intently until the end. He looked over at the other bed and then back at Vash.

"I… I'm sorry, Vash," Knives said, a little unsure of how to apologize. He knew it wasn't his fault, but he still felt responsible.

Vash looked up at him surprised, but smiled lightly.

"Thank you, Knives," he said.

Knives gave a slight nod. He looked back over at the short woman. A moment later he looked back over at Vash.

"Did you look on her back for the wound?" he asked.

"Yes, we did," Vash said, "But by the time you were dropped off, her body was completely covered. Why?"

Suddenly Knives began to pull on the various tube and wires on his body. The machines beeped violently before stopping at a continuous whine. He made his way quickly to Meryl's side, Vash closely behind him.

"What is it Knives?"

Millions didn't answer him; instead he lifted Meryl's body on her side. Without hesitation he lifted the back of her shirt. Vash stared, both dumb founded and curious at this brother's actions.

"I know it's here," Knives muttered under his breath as he ran his fingers across her back.

Knives stopped, his body stiffened. He jerked his hand away and looked up at Vash.

"It's on her back," Knives said.

Vash made his way to his brother's side and without another thought reached over to her back. Knives caught his wrist, inches from the wound. Vash looked up at his brother's hard expression.

"What do you think you're doing?" Millions demanded.

"Knives, I have to," Vash said, tugging at his arm.

"No, Vash, you've already done this once," Knives said, his expression changing, "You're already changing, I can even feel it. You're already becoming different, and you it. Who knows what this is going to do to you? Let me do this."

Vash stared ahead, taking in Knives words. It was true, he was changing, but for better or for worst, he wasn't sure. Another boost like this could either kill him, or change him completely into a plant. Vash sighed and backed away.

"I can't ask you to do this Knives," he said, grimly looking at his brother.

"You're not," Knives paused, then he added, "I took Rem from you Vash, let me save Stryfe."

Vash closed his eyes and nodded his head. He whispered a word of thanks stepping away. Knives reached over to Meryl's back. Once again his body stiffened, Vash saw his jaw clench as the feathers began to disappear from Meryl's body revealing her pale skin. The color returned to her face quickly after and the wound faded away, only to split open on the platinum blond. He staggered back losing his footing. Vash caught him just as he hit the ground.

"Knives!"

Knives blinked, shaking his head, "I'm… I'm fine."

Groaning he stood up, as the small body on the bed shifted. Vash's heart raced. Meryl opened her eyes, taking a deep breath. She glanced around pausing at Vash and Knives. Vash frowned, her eyes were empty; there wasn't a hint of recognition. Meryl sat up not taking her eyes off of them. She narrowed her brows as if she was searching for who they were.

"Meryl?" Vash said, a bit unsure.

Meryl shifted her gaze to the spiky blonde. She stayed silent for a while, searching her memory.

"Va… Vash?" she stuttered.

The humanoid took a breath of relief when he heard his name. He smiled a brightly as he could, holding back the tingling in stomach.

"Are you alright?"

"Yeah," she replied, holding her forehead in her hands, "Other than the fact that my head feels like it was run over by a sand steamer. What happened? Where are we? Where is Milly? And why am I hooked up to these?" she urged holding up the various wires that were attached to her body.

Vash sighed inwardly listening to her, she was alright.

"We're in Seed City," he said, sitting down, "Milly is probably making dinner with Arian."

"Arian? What is he doing here?" Meryl asked.

"Yes," Knives gritted involuntarily, "What_is _he doing here?"

"We needed a ride from April, he offered."

Knives got up from his chair and began to walk away, hands in his pockets. When asked where he was going Knives simply waved his hand and disappeared through the door. Vash turned back to Meryl, who offered a small smile. He smiled back, as honestly as he could. He wanted to do so much. He wanted to wrap his arms around her and crush her, he wanted to pour his heart out, he want to kiss her, tell her everything. Instead he pushed back the chair and stood up.

"I'll let you rest," he said softly, "I'll tell you everything tomorrow."

Meryl didn't say anything; she was staring at her lap. Just as Vash began to walk away she whispered,

"Please stay."

Vash turned and looked at her. Her head was still down, her eyes lost behind her raven hair.

"Please don't go," Meryl lifted her head, wearing a false mask, "Milly will be here soon, I'm sure she'd like to see you smiling."

Before he could stop himself, Vash pulled the small woman into tight embrace. He felt tense up,

"Wha… what are you doing?" Meryl faltered.

"Please don't scare me like that again," Vash whispered under his breath.

Meryl Stryfe stayed quiet, unable to move. Slowly, she relaxed. The short women hugged him back, smiling into his shoulder. Vash smiled into Meryl's hair, for now everything perfect.

* * *

Next Chapter: TBD

I hope everyone like this chapter. I know a lot of people have been asking for V/M fully so this is a beginning. Is it good? Please let me know what you think, or if you find any mistakes, I will be sure to correct them as soon as possible. Thank you!!


	11. Gossamer Minds

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I have no excuses, but I hope you like!! Surprises!! Yay! Enjoy!!

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Gossamer Minds

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"Work is the best way to keep a mind busy", her father had told her and Milly Thompson lived by that rule. It was the simplest and greatest distraction from all of life's un-pleasantries. She kept herself busy for a very long time after Mr. Priest died, caring for the one directly responsible for his death. It served her purpose, and once he could care for himself, the pain she once felt was simply numb. It rarely ever bothered her anymore. So once again Milly looked to her father's words to take her mind off of the current problem in her life. Her partner, her mentor, her best friend was sick and there was nothing she could do. To make things worse, Mr. Knives was also unconscious. So she kept busy, listening intently, or at least trying to, to Mr. Arian.

"It's unbelievable how fresh the market is," he said, picking up a bag of overpriced vegetables.

Milly offered a smile, looking glumly over the list of ingredients they needed to get for dinner.

"What do we need next?" Mr. Arian asked, looking over Milly's shoulder, "Meat and butter. I'll get the meat; can you get the butter, please?"

Milly nodded, grateful that she had something to keep her mind occupied. She wandered around the store, blindly looking up and down the aisles for butter. She turned into the next isle and nearly dropped her basket. The entire section was filled with pudding! Milly desperately suppressed a squeal, her eyes wide. There were so many flavors, some she had never even heard of. They even had gourmet pudding! She clapped her hands as she walked down, tossing various packets into an already overflowing basket. _This sounds delicious! Oh and this sounds scrumptious and oof…_

She bumped into someone causing her to drop the various cups she was holding in her arms.

"You should really watch where you're going, Thompson."

"Oh, I'm so sorry, Mr. Knives, I wasn't…" Milly stopped and looked up. It was the humanoid, the one who was unconscious the last time she saw him. Milly wasn't quite sure if she was imagining things or if he really was there. Before she could stop herself Milly dived at the platinum blonde, illusion or not. She hit a solid chest as her arms encircled his neck. He was real, and he was ok. Milly could barely contain her tears; it was good to see Mr. Knives again. It wasn't pleasant to see him lying in bed. It brought back too many memories of what she had lost; she didn't want to lose him too.

"Thank goodness!" Milly cried, "Thank goodness, you're ok, Mr. Knives."

Milly felt his muscles stiffen up under her skin; Mr. Knives really didn't like being touched. Right now, though, he would have to put up with it. Everyone needed a hug, especially if they were missed. She held him tighter fearful that he would disappear. She didn't quite realize how much she had missed him. She missed his sarcastic comments that she never completely understood but laughed along with anyway. She missed his aloofness, and how nothing ever fazed him. Most of all she missed that uncharacteristic smile that would turn up the corner of his lips everything she handed him a pudding cup. It was so secretive, as if it were just for…

Milly pulled back, blushing fiercely, "I'm sorry, Mr. Knives."

She looked at him with the sweetest smile she could conjure up, trying to cool down her face. _What in the world am I doing?_ she asked herself, quickly gathering up all of the fallen packets. Then she remembered,

"Sempai!" she shouted, "Is she…?" Milly trailed off, afraid to finish the sentence.

"Stryfe is awake, she alright" he said.

Without another word, Milly took off, a collection of pudding bouncing in her arms. She rushed out the door, ignoring people shouting for her to pay. She didn't care, her Sempai was awake. She was awake!

-

Milly was nothing but a blur of hair, tears, arms and pudding. She threw her arms around her Sempai's neck, dropping the various cups of pudding onto her mentor's lap. She sobbed into her shoulder, she had missed her so. Without her guidance Milly was so lost, even her pudding did not offer her any chances. People should never get hurt, never. She tightened her grip on her Sempai. Milly heard her voice comforting her, promising her she was alright. Why did people get hurt? Why did the people she cared about always get hurt? She remembered the last time someone she cared about was taken away. It hurt her so badly, but Sempai was there, that made it hurt a little less. But no one was there when she was going to be taken away. Mr. Arian tried his hardest to cheer her up, but he wasn't Sempai. Mr. Vash was there, but he was in pain too. Why did people do this to them? They all just wanted to be happy. They wanted to help people, and in return they were only hurt. She hoped that whoever did this would feel horrible and that whatever pudding he was going eat was simply rotten!

-

Meryl Stryfe eased her friend off her shoulders and into the chair that she had come to occupy so often. Milly had cried herself to sleep, refusing to let go of Meryl. Needless to say, Meryl was relieved when her friend dozed off. It's not she didn't appreciate her concern, but Meryl didn't like people making a big fuss over her. Besides, she had a feeling that her partner probably hadn't had a proper night's sleep in the last few days anyway.

Knives walked in, holding bags of groceries. Meryl raised an eyebrow, but the look on his face dared her to say a word. He looked so uncharacteristic. It seemed that Milly ran out with an arm full of pudding cups and he and Arian were forced to pay for them and the rest of the supplies. But how the great Millions Knives agreed to carry home bags of groceries baffled the raven haired woman. Arian was happy to see that Meryl was up, and he was even more pleased that Milly was asleep. He excused himself, clearly sensing that the trio had some catching up to do. Knives made a rude comment that he was not a thomas and that he was not carrying anymore grocery bags. He grabbed a nurse, who was unfortunate enough to be passing by, and shoved the bags into his hands. The man looked up at the half-plant confused and a little frightened. He opened his mouth to protest but quickly shut it after the daggers thrown his way. He quickly followed Arian out of the room and out of harm's way. Meryl couldn't help but smile, it was good to have familiarity in the situation, she wasn't quite sure what she would've done if Knives had taken the bags.

The short doctor walked in following Arian's exit, having been notified by one of the staff that Meryl was indeed no longer a plant. The short insurance agent let out a small sigh, more attention. However she still put on a brave face and hoped for no needles. The doctor ran some tests, checking her heart rate, her breathing and her vitals. He took a DNA sample to check that the blood had completely left her system. Once he was done, he demanded the brothers tell him how she was no longer a plant. The twins tried to resist, Vash trying to explain that they all needed rest and Knives simply stared biting his lips from saying something that he might regret later. _Might,_ Meryl thought to herself. But the doctor was persistent and wouldn't have any of it. Meryl was glad because she knew that she would never win an argument against the Humanoid Typhoon and his older brother, especially his older brother. At least this man had some traction.

Eventually Vash gave in, followed by a rather annoyed grunt by his twin. Mr. Stampede cited his story for the second time that day, filling Meryl in all the details that she had missed. When it was Knives' turn he recalled his part of the tale since October, but all the while making it clear that he was not doing for anyone but his brother. Meryl flushed a little when she heard that he was one who healed her. She kept her professionalism in the forefront, but it stayed in the back of her head. He really did care for his brother and he healed her for his brother. Stryfe snapped at herself, this was not the time to be thinking of such things. Lives, especially theirs may be at stake. Knives finished and sat down at the chair that Vash had occupied and Vash sat at the edge of Meryl's bed. They all waited for the doctor to say something. He was deep in thought absorbing the ice berg of information that was hurled at him. Meryl was used to things like this, so she knew how to handle it, but she wasn't sure if the doctor could sort out all of which had been presented to him. Not much to her surprise, he sighed saying that indeed they needed their rest and that plans of their next move would have to wait. With that he left, not a look back. Knives grunted watching him leave. Meryl grabbed one of her many blankets off of her bed and tossed it on Milly. At least one of them would get a good night's rest.

She looked up at the brothers; there was still one thing she wasn't completely filled in on…

"I'm going to ask this again, what is Red October about?"

"I've told you already, Stryfe," Knives growled.

"I know, but you didn't tell me all of it, Knives," she said looking at him, "I think, at least now, I have the right to know."

Million Knives said nothing, and Meryl knew he wasn't going to tell her anymore than he already has. So she looked at the younger one on the other end of the bed, what was so great about this book anyway?

"Arian," Vash began looking down at his feet, "was an orphan in the middle of a war, like Knives said, but he was a spy. He wasn't aware of it though. His government experimented on him using sounds, music to be more precise. It would be almost like a trigger from when he switches from being a prisoner to a spy. It's a painful process because it's mind numbing. It makes the subject mad and sometimes even causes them to… to take their own lives. It was also used in other experiments which were never explained. However Arian survives but doesn't know he's a spy, whatever he does as his other self is forgotten.

"One day he gets a cell mate, an older boy, a rebel. He's never named," Vash said remembering Rem's words, "He plans many escapes for both of them, which all fail. Arian carries out his mission every night which was to kill all of the captured soldiers from his country. The government knew that if their soldiers were tortured enough that one of them would break and tell the enemy all of the secrets, so they sent in a spy which the other side would never suspect to take care of them. The other boy realizes what Arian is doing, but does nothing about it because he is the one who programmed him. The older boy is actually a scientist. By his father's orders he aids his government by creating people like Arian. However Arian is the only person who survives his experiments and the government uses him. During that time, he begins to lose his mind and his government shuns him. Angry, the older boy sabotages his own experiment without the government's knowledge. Once he leaves he begins to do experiments on his own, on himself and his sister. His laboratory gets raided and he is taken captive and put in the cell with Arian. During one of their attempts, the older boy gets caught and killed. While he dies, he tells Arian what he has been doing at nights. However, he assures him that he will no longer kill those soldiers because his once he dies Arian would no longer be a slave. He dies. A few months later the prison is raided, Arian is freed and that's the end."

But that wasn't the end, Meryl could tell,

"There's more."

Vash closed his eyes as if he, himself, were trying to figure out how to comprehend the bit of information.

"The book was never finished," he said finally.

"What do you mean?" the short insurance agent asked, her brows knitting together.

"There was more to the story, but the book was never finished, it still had almost two hundred pages that were blank," Vash said, meeting his twin's eyes.

"But… I don't understand," Meryl admitted.

"The copy Rem had was the only copy ever written," Knives said, "She said it a parting gift from someone before she left her planet."

Meryl sighed, "Isn't that convenient?"

There was a heavy silence in the room, occasionally interrupted by various machines that beeped or Milly's breathing. Then Meryl had a thought,

"Who was the author?"

The twins thought about it for a second before Knives answered,

"Akira."

-

He smiled… what impeccable memory the humanoids had. The name sounded so sinister on his lips, it was rather pleasing. And how deliciously his plans were moving along, no one could delight him like he could. However, he sighed, there was still work to do and errands to run. It wouldn't be too long now, though… oh he couldn't wait!

-

The Humanoid Typhoon lay in bed staring at the ceiling he had been staring at for the past few days. He had memorized every inch of those tiles so that he wouldn't burst out crying. Vash grinned, remembering that his brother and Meryl were sleeping in their own beds, rather than hospital ones. He finally had a chance to think about what was happening around him. Everything seemed to be out of control since he got there. He didn't have a chance to rest his racing mind, it was always one thing after another. Vash rolled over in his bed, soothing away the headache that he hadn't realized he had for the past few days. His body, as Vash brilliantly concluded, was not able to keep up with the various changes that were taking place. It seemed that Doc realized that too, because he had ordered Vash to rest several times, with no such luck, of course. What was really straining him during the mutation was the voices he heard. It had started out as blips of sounds that he would hear, but he had brushed it off. But every night the voices, got louder and louder.

Vash sat up, he hadn't had time to think about who's voices they were. He tried to listen again, intently to anything; he even closed his eyes and concentrated. Nothing, Vash sighed, only the occasional breeze that brushed past his window and his brother's uneventful slumber. He tried to remember the voices he heard. They were faint, but familiar. They were singing at first, he was sure of that, in a language that he could not comprehend. He let the songs play in his head and tried to enhance them. So familiar, it was as if he was born of them. Vash froze, born of them? Singing? He played the songs over in his head again, they songs of mourning and farewells. They were the voices of his sisters! He heard his sister's voices, they were communicating with each other. He did have the ability to commune with his siblings, but he was never truly able to speak to them, and neither was his brother. They could both only interpret the illusions and emotions in and of their minds. Knives could, much better than Vash, but now he could actually communicate with them. He had to tell his brother. He could talk to his sisters! He could talk to the plants! Vash stopped… he could talk to the plants… because he was becoming a plant.

Vash's shoulders' drooped, he was becoming a plant. He wasn't quite sure how he felt about that, how was he supposed to feel about that? Vash looked over at his brother across the room. This wasn't right… he shouldn't be happy about this, should he? The only reason Vash had this new ability was because whoever was killing the plants did something to them, manipulated them. He had the blood of one of his sister's running through his body, mutating him. It was his human half that was reacting to her blood, it was a virus. Vash buried his head in his hands, remembering that he had a pounding headache, why make them into plants? What was the point?

_He's playing with us, trying to break us_, he heard Knives growl. So his brother was awake. Vash sighed, it was true what Knives said. But there were still questions that needed to be answered.

_Why is he even targeting us?_ Vash asked, _It doesn't make any sense_.

"I don't know," Knives said sitting up in his bed, his eyes narrow, "but I will kill him."

Vash sighed and opened his mouth to say something, but his brother cut him off.

"Don't. I know what you're going to say," he said, "But you can't blame me."

"I know," said the Humanoid Typhoon.

"I'm just angry," hissed the former genocide, glaring at a glass on a side table "He's playing us like pawns and we can't do anything about it."

The glass on the table shattered, making Vash jump. He looked at his brother glaring at nothing, ignoring the glass. His abilities were advancing rapidly, faster than Vash's. It wasn't surprising, he was more plant that Vash. But Knives was going have to learn to control them at a faster rate than Vash. He looked at his brother lost in a world that the Typhoon couldn't understand. Knives' breathing was hard and purposeful and his eyes were closed. Vash heard his sisters talking to his older twin, trying to calm him. He saw him press his lips to a thin line, biting his tongue. With a sharp breath he looked back at the spiky blonde.

"Goodnight, Vash."

With that Knives lay back down and shut himself off from his younger twin. Vash knew better and said nothing. His brother needed time, but they both knew that was one thing they didn't have.

Vash closed his eyes and listened to his singing again. They calmed Knives' mind, maybe they can so the same to his own. Their songs were beautiful, so sad, so heartfelt, so pure. Their voices were angelic, luring and sweet. He felt the weight on his eyelids. He needed a good night's rest so he let himself be taken away. He knew his brother was listening to them as well, he was probably asleep by now. Vash let his head fall onto his pillow and allowing his sisters to lull him to sleep.

-

"Come on, Vash!" a young boy called, "we have to catch them!"

A thin, white haired, boy waved in the distance against a bright blue sky. He stood on top of a low, green, hill. The air was fresh and smelled of flowers. Water was running somewhere not too far, and birds chatted away in the nearby trees. The boy on the hill top looked familiar, Vash knew that face from a long time ago. That eager face that was always ready for an adventure, before it was tarnished. Vash looked down at his hands. They were small, he felt shorter… he was young, he was dreaming.

_Are you alright, Vash? _A voice said from behind. Vash turned to see a tall Rem Saverem. She smiled that sweet smile that lifted anyone's spirits.

_Go play with your brother, Vash, he's waiting._ Vash looked back at his older brother who was impatiently waiting with his arms crossed and a scowl on his face.

"Will you be here?" he asked, "When I get back?"

Rem's smile widened,_ Of course, Vash._

"Vash!"

"I'm coming!"

Vash ran up the hill, watching his brother disappear behind it. He was chasing something. Once at the top, Vash looked down to see Knives standing at the bottom with his back turned to him. Vash dashed down calling to Knives. But he didn't respond. He up next to the boy calling his name again, still platinum blonde stood still. He was intently looking at something in his hands.

"Knives?"

Knives looked at his younger sibling, he body now mature, but his eyes were still frightened like a child's.

"What is it, Knives?"

"The butterfly," he began, opening his hands to reveal a dead butterfly, "I just wanted to save them."

Suddenly the crystal blue sky rolled in dark clouds. It began to rain and the butterflies fell from the sky. Vash stood, unable to move, unable to believe his eyes. They were falling, they were all dead. The lush landscape was covered in these fragile creatures. Vash tried to catch one, but it fell right through his hands.

_Why?_ Vash begged his mentor, _Why is this happening?_

_You must learn that you cannot save everyone,_ said Rem, _all you can do is save the ones you can, and protect the people that matter to you the most._

_But why?_ Knives screamed, _Am I supposed to let my family die?_

Rem's smile faded, You _have a lot to learn, Knives, but I hope you keep your mind open. Your ticket to life has been renewed, please use it wisely and you will see that not everything is at a loss. You can still win._

Rem took the butterfly from Knives. It began to glow and as did the ones on the ground. She let it go and it flapped its wings. One by one, most of the butterflies flickered and flew away, but the rest crumpled away catching the wind and floating next to their flying friends.

_Every choice you make has consequences, so you both must weigh them and make the choice that is right._

The landscape disappeared into a dark abyss. Rem was gone.

_Rem? _Vash called. The twins looked around called out to her, but their eyes only met inky blackness. Suddenly they heard footsteps. They looked towards the sound, their senses picking up nothing.

"Saverem's been called away, I'll be filling in for her for now," a voice said.

Vash's eyes narrowed, he knew that voice, a voice he hadn't heard for a very long time, but it couldn't be. Slowly, a figure came into view. Vash gasped, eyes wide.

"Who are you?" Knives asked, oblivious to Vash's reaction.

The man smirked.

"You didn't tell him about me, Tongari?" he asked, "But I don't expect you would remember me anyway, Knives. I'm Wolfwood, Nicholas D. Wolfwood."

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Next Chapter: TBD

So this is chapter 11. Let me know what you think. The next one is going to more exciting than this one, I just had to get this stuff out of the way. So, please R&R and let me know of any mistakes that I need to correct!! Thank you much!!!


	12. Point of View

Hello. I updated early! Hell has frozen over! Ahhh... anyway, I have been working on this one vigorously and I like it. It might be confusing, but it's meant be. I hope you like it! Again, please R&R. And as for any grammatical errors, please point them out and I will fix them! Thank you for reading and enjoy!

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Point of View

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Meryl Stryfe, of the Bernadelli Insurance Agency, opened her eyes to misty blackness. The Scientist, as he referred to himself, heard her stomach growl loudly; it brought a smile to his lips, how funny humans are. How susceptible they were to themselves, their needs and especially their wants. That's why they are so easy to manipulate, it made his life all the more easier.

Meryl Stryfe moved, throwing the sheets aside. She stepped down from her bed and tip toed over to another bed that also occupied the room. Although it was difficult to see in the dark, the person in the bed was tall. Meryl Stryfe nudged the form calling her name softly. The figure didn't move. She nudged her again, only to be rejected once more. Frustrated, Meryl Stryfe pulled the blanket off the other's head, shouting her name.

Milly Thompson, of the Bernadelli Insurance Agency, shot up in her bed, her stun-gun filling her intruder's vision. He raised an eyebrow, for such a large girl, she could move. Meryl Stryfe froze; her heart raced with a thousand echoes. Slowly, she relaxed and rolled her eyes. She clarified to her friend who she was and pushed the giant gun away. She blew her raven hair from her eyes making it easier for him to see. The large girl seemed confused for a second, but bubbled up once she realized who it was. Meryl Stryfe went to the other end of the room and flickered on the light. Her eyes lost focus, but she quickly regained her composer.

"Is something wrong, Sempai?" Milly Thompson asked.

"No," Meryl Stryfe said, looking down at her bare feet, "I just realized how hungry I was. I haven't eaten in the last few days."

_Weakling_, he thought, the sides of his lips curling up.

"Oh! Well, I have lots of pudding that I bought at the store today… but I think it's in Mr. Arian's room."

Her Sempai sighed and placed a hand on her growling stomach. She wondered, out loud, if the cafeteria was open at this late hour.

"I don't think so, Sempai. They closed an hour ago."

Her stomach growled again.

"Why don't we go to Mr. Arian's room and get it? I bet they're delicious!" said Milly Thompson, her eyes clearly sparkling.

"No we can't, Milly."

"Why not? I used to break into my big-big brother's room, to play pranks on him all the time! Oh, they are so much fun!"

The Scientist raised an eyebrow, she was serious. A tingle went down his sides and he laughed, whole heartedly and fully, he laughed. She was funny, he liked her. Pranks! Oh, how he loved them too! He heard the short insurance agent, Meryl Stryfe, sigh, apparently she didn't like pranks.

"We can't break into his room, Milly," she said, ignoring her protesting stomach.

"Oh, come on, Sempai," said his favorite brunette, "it'll be an adventure!"

"Don't you think we have enough adventures, Milly?"

But she saw that her partner wasn't listening, and he saw that she was plotting. He really liked her now, what a sinister mind she could have. Her Sempai asked her what she was doing. Suddenly, the large one grabbed her wrist and dragged her out the door. Meryl Stryfe protested, but the taller brunette, Milly Thompson, put a finger to her lips with a sly smile gracing her lips.

_Now, that is a woman, that Milly Thompson of the Bernadelli Insurance Agency,_ he thought watching her lips curve even more.

He heard the other insurance agent say something and watched the tall one tip-toe down the dim hallway.

"I suggest you follow her, Meryl Stryfe," he said out loud, leaning his cheek in his hand.

The screen flickered before him before she started moving towards the brunette,

"I can't believe I'm doing this," he heard her whisper to herself.

_I can, I can_, he thought licking his soft lips.

He watched her catch up to her partner, and they both snuck into the hallway where the boys were. Suddenly, Meryl Stryfe whispered asking why they were sneaking around. A petite nurse walks by as they crouch down. Meryl Stryfe looked at her and waved sheepishly. The nurse knitted her eyebrows and quickly walked away. The Scientist giggled, how amusing!

Milly Thompson took off again, her movements graceful but swift. Her mentor followed closely. They came upon their destination. The taller agent, Milly Thompson, looked around, checking for trouble. Then she carefully opened the door. It squeaked loudly.

"Shhhh!" Milly Thompson whispered to the inanimate object.

They walked into the vast common room, making sure not to make any noise.

"I feel ridiculous, Milly."

"Shh, Sempai!"

They walked past the kitchen, into the hall with the boys' rooms. Meryl Stryfe suggested that the pudding might be in the fridge, but Milly Thompson shook her head, laughing nervously. She whispered that Mr. Arian didn't trust the pudding would last long if it were in the fridge, so he kept it in his room so she could have if after she ate a complete meal. Meryl Stryf's eyes widened, but he wasn't surprised.

Milly Thompson stopped in front of Arian's room, but Meryl Stryfe eyed the door directly across.

_That's where Millions Knives and Vash the Stempede are_, he thought, _I wonder if they are having as much fun as I am._

"Aren't you curious, Meryl, Meryl Stryfe?" he whispered.

Before she could stop herself, Meryl Stryfe pushed the door open to the twins' room. The door opened, whining softly. He heard Milly Thompson behind her, but that was unimportant.

"Who are you?" he heard Millions Knives demand.

Meryl Stryfe stepped back and the hostility, making him curse the older twin. How rude he was! Then he heard the former Sixty Billion Double Dollar man whisper one name,

"Wolfwood?"

Milly Thompson gasped behind her tutor. Meryl Stryfe turned to look at her partner. Her eyes were wide, completely oblivious to anything but what the half-plant had just said. But The Scientist knew immediately what was happening. The boys were dreaming. They were of one mind now, more so than before. They were on with their sisters, with each other, with themselves. His plans never failed. Now The Scientist simply needed to sit back and watch it all unfold from the perfect little package it was delivered in.

He heard Milly Thompson take a step closer when Millions Knives spoke again.

"Wolfwood?" his voice was laced with uncertainty, "The priest?"

That's odd, what is that in his voice? Confusion? Fear? Guilt? It wasn't quite clear. All those emotions were so uncharacteristic and unbecoming of the former mass murderer. Millions Knives was so much more fun when he knew what he wanted and went after it. It was especially fun when he manipulated and used people. But now he's lost that genius, that drive, that passion for absolutely nothing. Millions Knives was a disappointment and an embarrassment.

The Scientist looked back at his favorite insurance agent, her expression had changed. Her brows were furrowed, her eyes brimming with sorrow, but there was a hint of something else. What was it? He looked closer… guilt? What did she have to be guilty for? It was in fact Millions Knives that killed Nicholas D. Wolfwood, the priest, the hypocrite… oh…

_My my, now this is, is, is, interesting_, the Scientist thought with toppling glee, _what a grand twist to this story_.

"Milly," Meryl Stryfe said, feeling uneasy.

"Stay, Meryl Stryfe," the Scientist sang, as if commanding a dog.

Meryl Stryfe froze, biting her lip. Her brow knitted together as if to wonder what she was thinking. Her eyes swooped over to her friend. The tall girl's, Milly Thompson's, eyes were hidden away behind her hair. She stood so still she was almost like a statue. It was obvious that she didn't hear her Sempai calling to her. She was simply gone.

"February?" Vash the Stampede suddenly said, bringing the girls from their trance.

Silence followed as the occupants waited for one of the brother's speak.

"Ok, Wolfwood, we'll go," said Vash the Stampede.

Millions Knives said nothing; it was disappointing, no witty remark, no snarling comment… nothing. But he still got a juicy piece of information, they were coming to February. They figured it out sooner than anticipated, but one must go with the flow that flows, like mercury in the brain. Preparations must be made for the party and he was the main course. Oh how unrehearsed the Scientist was!

"Milly, we should go," Meryl Stryfe whispered, forcing herself.

The girl, Milly Thompson, looked at her mentor, tears welling over her eyes, her lips pressed into a thin line, her nose and cheeks flaring red. Her strength was breaking and so was her heart. The Scientist giggled, so silly humans were. They let their emotions run their lives, making decisions based on how they feel and letting down their guard because they are sad. He laughed harder, so easy they were to manipulate, and they were all going to play right into his plate.

"Meryl?" the Scientist heard the younger twin, Vash the Stampede, whisper.

Meryl Stryfe jumped at the sound of her name. She saw him sit up in his bed, the black of the room covering his face.

"Is something wrong?" Vash the Stampede asked, his voice sticky with sick concern.

"No, no, we just came to find Arian," Meryl Stryfe whispered.

Vash the Stampede slipped out of his bed. His hair was in his face, his eyes were heavy and his chest was bare… well what was left of it. He would look so yummy if only he didn't have metal for flesh. Still, it made you sigh, he had a 60 billion double dollar body, a body to die for. The Scientist licked his lips as the younger twin turned on the light. A protesting groan escaped his older brother. He sat up squinting at the sudden brightness. From the corner of Meryl Stryef's eye, he saw Milly Thompson take a step back. Vash the Stampede saw it too.

"Were we talking in our sleep?" he asked not taking his eyes off of Milly Thompson.

Meryl Stryfe nodded, unsure of what to say.

"Why are you here?" Millions Knives asked, heavily irritated.

Ooh, feisty, Millions Knives always knew how to hide how he really felt.

"We… we were just…" Meryl Stryfe stuttered.

She was taken aback by Millions Knives' tone, but why was she stuttering?

"We were looking for pudding in Mr. Arian's room," Milly Thompson said.

Her voice was steady, but there was something else behind it. Meryl Stryfe eyed her friend who was looking at the half-plant. Her face was soft, her lips curled up into a gentle smile, but there was desperate sadness in her eyes.

Millions Knives said nothing, his eyes locked with Milly Thompson's. Now this is always interesting, the girl who loved the priest and the man who killed him. What drama on drama!!

"Where is he?" Millions Knives finally said, looking over at Meryl.

"We don't know, he's not in his room."

"What?" spat the platinum blonde, Millions Knives. He jumped out bed and stormed past the girls. Vash the Stampede may have the body to die for, but Millions Knives had a body kill for. It was chiseled, and toned, and it was nearly flawless. The only wounds that scarred his god-like body were those inflicted by his own brother. How sad… he was just jealous. Oh the temptations! The Scientist bit his lips until they bleed. He smiled, tasting the warmth and breathing slowly. The Scientist let his blood run down his chin leaving red, glowing, streaks.

Meryl Stryfe saw Millions Knives peek into Arian's room, turning on the light. He cursed sharply and all the bulbs in the building flickered. Millions Knives walked towards the bed, his stride heavy as if he was controlling every muscle in his body. He picked up a piece of paper that was on the pillow. Millions Knives opened it and let his eyes scan the paper and a light bulb shattered. Meryl Stryfe and Milly Thompson jumped.

_That's right Millions Knives, get angry,_ he thought with a deliciously wicked smile, _Oh so angry, come find me_.

Millions Knives just stared at the paper in his hands, as another bulb exploded, then another.

"Knives, calm down," Vash the Stampede said stepping in front of the girls.

What a Knight.

Millions Knives said nothing. He lifted his head, his lips disappearing into a thin controlled line. His bright blue eyes narrowed and flared an angry red. The devil himself would run with his tail between his legs, after that look.

Meryl Stryfe's eyes grew wide. That look… that's the look Vash the Stampede feared… that's the look that sent chills down the spine, oh and it sent lovely chilly down the Scientist's spine. It made the hair on the back of his neck stand erect and that's exactly how he liked it, exactly what he wanted.

"What does it say Knives?" Vash the Stampede said, stepping into the room.

Millions Knives handed his brother the paper. Vash the Stampede read it and looked back up at his older sibling.

"I'm going to kill him."

It was a cake of a whisper that left Millions Knives' lips, but it was hoarse with sweet maliciousness.

"What does it say?" Meryl Stryfe demanded, regaining her composer from the shock of Millions Knives.

"February," Vash the Stampede said without looking at her.

"I don't understand," Meryl Stryfe, her voice now dry.

"We…" Vash the Stampede hesitated, "we were supposed to go to February tomorrow. We were going to talk to you about it in the morning."

"Why? What is going on?" Meryl Stryfe demanded, suddenly agitated. She was feisty too.

"The plants in February are the ones that haven't showed any signs of destruction. We should check out why."

"How do you know this?" Meryl Stryfe asked, crossing her breakable arms.

"It's hard to explain," Vash the Stampede said looking square into her eyes.

Meryl Stryfe glared at him, but kept her pretty mouth shut about it.

"Fine, then what does this have to do with Arian?" Meryl Stryfe asked her voice shrill.

"He wants us to follow," hissed Millions Knives.

Meryl Stryfe just stared for a while, this was confusing.

"How do you know he wasn't kidnapped or forced?" Meryl Stryfe questioned, challenging Millions Knives.

"BECAUSE _HE_ IS THE CAUSE FOR ALL OF THIS!"

All glass in their wing shattered into millions of pieces. They stood in the dark, the voices of panic clear as day outside the walls.

"It's not true," Milly Thompson's honey sweet voice broke the silence between them.

Even in the dark, Millions Knives' eyes blazed.

"We don't know, Milly," Vash the Stampede said before Millions Knives could open his mouth.

Knives gave his brother a sickened look and walked past him.

"We're leaving tonight," he muttered harshly.

No one object, no one dared to. Milly Thompson followed him, whispering that she was going off to pack their things. Vash the Stampede and Meryl Stryfe were left alone, no one bothered to call for them. Vash the Stampede's eyes were on Meryl Stryfe, the Scientist could feel it. Suddenly Meryl Stryfe collapsed, it even surprised the Scientist. In a second Vash the Stampede was by her side, oh what a Knight indeed. Her vision was blurry, she was crying, how utterly disturbing.

"Meryl…?"

"They're there," she choked, "…all there… February… supposed to keep her safe".

Vash the Stampede's brows knitted together with disgusting worry.

"Who, Meryl? Who's there?"

Meryl Stryfe looked up, tears cascading down her pretty face, and she whispered so softly,

"My family."

Oh! Oh! Oh this is too good! This must be a sign from God! A sign that everything will fall exactly how he wanted it to fall. Too precious, too precious, this was! How good, how appetizingly good! The Scientist jumped up from his chair, letting the wires tear from his body. He skipped over to a glass bubble on the other side of the floor and threw himself onto it, his arms wide open. He nuzzled the cold glass, kissing it with his red, red lips.

"Did you hear that sister?" the Scientist squealed, "Not only are they coming, but Meryl Stryfe's pathetic family is here! I am very disappointed that I missed this, but it's ok, you can punish me."

His sister said nothing, but that was alright. Oh how high, high, the stakes were, and everything was in his favor. The Scientist will win, the Scientist will finally taste the victory that he has been longing for since before the womb. That sweet nectar, that bitter happiness, oh, the ecstasy!

"I must leave you, my lovely sister. I have much to do, much to do, but fear not, I will return. I love you, my sister, with all of my red, red heart."

The Scientist looked at the glowing figure inside the glass and placed a hand over her angelic, angelic, face.

"I love with all my heart, Mika."

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Next Chapter: Winter in February

Yay, Chapter 12 has been posted. What did you think? Please, please, please R&R. I really would like to know if I should go on or not... Also I'd like to know if there needs to changes made to the story and so on. So please R&R!!! Thank you!!!


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